Happy chocolate day!

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I’m not big into Valentine’s as an adult.  Remember how fun it was in elementary school?  First, I got to pore over the wall of Valentine’s at the store.  (No handmade craftiness for us.)  Would I get Strawberry Shortcake or the Smurfs?  What would my choice say about me??

Then, I would divide up the eight cheesy cards in the pack and completely over-analyze which message should go to each person.  Would the “you’re the sweetest” or the “be my valentine home run” card better convey my affection to my crush?  And then what did his card to me mean?  Please tell me I’m not the only person that did this.  Looking back, I’m sure guys just ripped through the bag and did some nuanced calculation like “chocolate? No?  Next card.”  Sometimes it is hard to be a girl.

Now I fall into the “Valentine’s Day is a forced display of affection that should be shown all year round and not because Hallmark tells you to” camp.  But I do like chocolate.  I’ve told James I thought it would be super romantical if he would get me an enormous box of chocolate–even better if marked down the day after–that is so big that I could take a bite and then throw away any pieces I didn’t like.  “Why wouldn’t you just look at the chocolate guide?” says you.  Me:  What sort of monster are you?  I bet you read the last page of novels first.  Did you listen to nothing Forrest said?  You don’t get to know what you’re going to get!!!  (James has delivered on the giant chocolate box on multiple occasions.)

Anywho, not necessarily for Valentine’s but happy coincidence, I found myself on a voyage to chocolate.  A friend mentioned a “chocolate factory” down the tram line from us.  I thought this would be an excellent outing with my mom.

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The chocolate factory in question is Said dal 1923.  Go on and click over there for some serious chocolate porn.  Said is not too far from Termini.  We hopped on the #3 tram and took off.  (And by hopped, I mean lugged two children and manhandled a stroller onto the tram.)  We probably got off a stop too soon, but we oriented ourselves and made it OK.

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We had been warned that Said is down an alley.  There is a sign on the street, but I doubt I would have found this if I hadn’t been looking for it.  Willy Wonka, I am not.

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We rolled in.  (Literally, because of the stroller.  Get it?)  Chocolate abounded.  Cases of chocolate.  Chocolate bars.  Chocolate spoons.  Chocolate covered coffee beans.  I had to tell Henry not to touch the glass about 75 times.  That kid is more into chocolate these days than Cathy from the comic strip.

Up front, Said has the chocolate cases and some cafe seating.  The restaurant doesn’t open until 4:00 pm and you need reservations, but they were nice enough to let us poke around in back.  It has a reclaimed wood Pottery Barn kind of feel.  Very open and airy, but also cozy.  It would be a great spot for a super romantic styles date.  Apparently, for the food, they put that chocolate on everything.

Mac napped, until he woke up and still didn't get to enjoy any chocolate

Mac napped, until he woke up and still didn’t get to enjoy any chocolate

Our mission was the hot chocolate.  (The cafe also featured coffee with chocolate in various forms.)

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Deciding to hedge against toddler rage, we ordered three cups.  Hot chocolate with chili, with cinnamon, and just milk chocolate.  All with homemade whipped cream, natch.

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Decadent does not even begin to describe this stuff.  It is sort of like trying to drink pudding.  Or chocolate mousse.  Henry ate it with a spoon.  Adding the whipped cream made it a little more beverage like.  It was truly ridiculous.  My mom even uttered the unthinkable phrase, “I don’t think I can do any more chocolate” at one point.  It was that much chocolate.

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All in all, it was an excellent outing.  Trams showed up right as we rolled up.  We did not suffer any meltdowns whatsoever even after my mom DARED to utter “well, things are going good so far” midway through the outing.  Henry may have touched a cigarette butt, but this is why we have soap.  I want more outings like this.  Rasslin’ two kids onto public transit by myself can be crazy tough.  But I’m vowing to do more.  Particularly if there is a sweet reward at the end.  And you better believe, I’ll be back here for a date night soon.  Just not for Valentine’s Day.

Said dal 1923
Via Tiburtina 135, 00185
Tuesday – Thursday 10:00 – 00:30
Friday – Sunday 10:00 – 01:30
(+39) 06/4469204
said@said.it

Big V-Day plans?  Are you pro or con?  At least, pro chocolate though, right?

Rome, you know, for kids

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In general, we tend to avoid kid-focused entertainment.  Well, that’s not exactly true.  We go to the zoo, but I also like the zoo.  We go to the park, but I also like the park.

Hmm, what I’m trying to say is that–at least for sightseeing–we try to see interesting things and find something the kids are interested in there.  We went to Villa Torlonia, Henry found a palm frond.  We went to the Vatican, Henry chased a pigeon.  Things like that.

But the weather has been colder and wetter.  Days have been darker.  We have dipped our toe into some kid-focused entertainment.

I wouldn’t recommend hitting these sights if you are just in Rome for a few days.  But if you are in Rome for an extended period of time with kids, they may be worth investigating.

Explora

Explora is a children’s museum.  It is not too far from Piazza del Popolo and is right off the #19 tram line.  I took the kids on a weekday morning.

It was a pricier outing.  Everyone over three costs 8 euro; toddlers 12 – 36 months are 5 euro.  They do offer an annual pass.  If we lived closer to the museum, I might consider it.

Your entry buys you a 1 hour and 45 minute window.  For example, we were there from 10:00 – 11:45 am.  Timetables here.

I thought this would be a great rainy day activity, but you’d still get a little wet.  There is a parking lot, but it is a bit of a hike to the entrance.  And then the ticket office is in a separate building from the museum so you are exposed to the elements again to go between.  Not a huge deal, but I figure good to know.

Explora was very interesting, and I think it would be even more so if your kid is older than age two.  A lot of the stuff went over Henry’s head.  (Literally and figuratively.)  I realized how toddler-centric my world view has become when I couldn’t help but noting the hard concrete floors throughout the museum.

The museum focuses on role playing exhibits.  For example, there was a car that you could fill up with gas.  There was a garden where you could harvest veggies.  (If I were craftier, I’d work on making something like this.)  There was a supermarket with a checkout counter.  There was a kitchen with play food.  You get the drift.

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There was also a pretty sweet water area.  You moved levers and pumps that manipulated things in the exhibit.  Henry didn’t really get the cause and effect bit of that, but he did like splashing around.

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On the second floor, things seemed more exhibit-y and less hands on.  I only took Henry up there to try to distract him from throwing food at other peoples’ heads.  I don’t care if he throws the fake food.  Just not at heads.

There is also a separate area for the three and under crowd.  Still concrete floors, but some mats and other squashy things to play with.  Like this sweet instrument wall.

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There were a few field trip groups making their way through the museum.  It looked like fun.  If you have an elementary school age kid, I might consider Explora.  Not on a 3-day visit to Rome.  But maybe on a month long visit.

Explora, Museo dei Bambini
Via Flaminia, 80/86 – 00196
Tel. +39 06 3613776

Bimbilandia

On two rainy Saturday mornings, we headed over to Bimbilandia.  A quick note on the name, which cracks me up.  In Italian, a baby, or really baby + toddler, is a bambino.  (Bambina if feminine.)  Bambino is abbreviated to “bimbo.”  On the backs of cars you see “Bimbo a bordo” (baby on board) stickers.  It cracks me up every time.  And then if you have more than one bimbo, it is bimbi.  So I’m probably still messing up the translation somehow, but I just think, oh, my, we’re going to the land of the babies!!

Bimbilandia is a bit like Roman Chuck E. Cheese’s.  If Chuck E. Cheese also had an ice skating rink, coffee shop, and martial arts studio glommed on to it.  No, really, the place looks like your Southern relatives just started putting up various outbuildings and squashed them together.  (I can say that because I’m from South Carolina.)  The result is a structure does have heat piping in, but is still drafty.  The roof also leaks in certain places.  Less than ideal in a place you are running around in without any shoes.

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You have to drive to get to this one.  Unlike Explora, adults get in free.  Kids are 8 euro on the weekends (10:00 am – 1:00 pm and 2:30 – 7:30 pm) and only 6 euro on weekday afternoons (3:30 – 7:30 pm).  They keep not charging us for Mac; I think kids under one year are free.

Mac is skeptical of the ball pit

Mac is skeptical of the ball pit

Henry’s eyes lit up when we walked into this place.  It was all I could do to get his shoes off him before he bolted.  Unlike some things we do, there was zero new place hesitation.  He was like, “Oh, I’m ready to take this on.  I got this one.”

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It is a pretty sweet place for kids.  Enormous ball pit.  Inflatable slides.  Kid vehicles strewn around.  Trampolines.

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They do birthday parties here as well.  You can see little “houses” with fenced in yards for each party.  It looked like a neat setup.

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We’ve only gone right when they open.  It starts to fill up after the first hour and gets to be a bit much for the little kids.  I could see this being even more attractive when the kids are a little older.  You could sit calmly by the side with a cappuccino while watching your kids pelt each other with foam objects.

Still skeptical

Still skeptical

Bimbilandia
Viale Tor di Quinto, 55/57
Tel 06-98260444

So there you have it.  I don’t think either of these will be in our regular rotation, but I’m glad to have the option!

What Nobody Tells You About Pregnancy

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Ok, here’s the scoop.  Did you know that your hair looks amazing while you are pregnant?  Lush, shiny, full.  Probably as a gift to distract from cankles.  Of course you knew that.  This is no secret.

BUT did you know that a few months after you have the baby, your hair falls out??  Apparently, the lushness and shininess is all because the hairs are hanging on and not letting go.  But NOW.  This is their time to jet.  We’re talking about more hair shedding around the house than living with a sheepdog with allergies.  So much hair falling out in the shower that you wonder how you still have hair on your head.  So much hair that you somehow find one in the baby’s diaper.  So much hair that your two-year-old is so used to finding errant mommy hairs around that he knows to go put them in the trash.

Oh, you knew that, too?  Well, aren’t you savvy.  You get a pregnancy gold star.

BUT.  No really.  This is the part that no one tells you.

Regrowing your hair really sucks.

For example, I have these two little tufts at my crown.  Sometimes they can be covered by the existing hair.  But sometimes they curl up like little devil horns.  Sometimes they just do not want to be tamed.

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Mom trick: using a cute baby to distract from hair horns

I think the hair-tuation was mostly solved last time by having another baby.  Alas, this is not a long term strategy or solution.  Short term solution:  headbands.

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#halfbangsareawesome #hairhorns #tuftsFTW

Podcasts led me to Poop into a Wormhole

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So this is the issue with me trying to stockpile posts in advance.  I find that I keep changing what I want to say.

What is this podcast of which you speak

For example, on podcasts, first I was just going to point out that I’m late to the party.  Because this is a tech-related party, no one here should be shocked.  Melissa can’t figure out something that the rest of us have been doing for years and is basically like listening to snippets of NPR???  CLUTCHES PEARLS IN DISBELIEF.

I’m pretty behind on the news generally as well.  I tell James and friends that if anything happens in the world, they really need to let me know, because otherwise it could take awhile to filter down to me.  Friends smile and give me a figurative pat on the head like a kid freaking out about a monster hiding under the bed with a surprise pop quiz.  James nods stoically and tries to catalog news as he hears it because he knows the situation is dire.  I’m not proud of this.  It is definitely something to work on in 2015.

You may see where this is going.  I didn’t learn of Serial until it was over and done and it was already a big thing.  I’m actually kind of glad about this for two reasons:  (1) I do much better in a binge consuming format instead of patiently waiting for the next installment to hurry up and come out already and (2) I enjoyed it more knowing how it would end.  I know some people don’t dig ambiguity.  Normally I am one of them, but just knowing that I wouldn’t know made the whole experience OK.

When do you do the cast of pod

Next, I thought, well everyone knows about Serial.  Maybe I’ll just talk about when you listen to podcasts.  See, I had to figure out a good time to listen.  I don’t have a traditional commute.  Even when I used to commute, I would usually read WaPo’s free newspaper-let Express.  (Man, I heart Express.  I couldn’t even look up this link without clicking on two articles.)

I wasn’t one to listen to music on my phone.  Being tied to a phone still feels weird, but that’s another story.  This drives James nuts, but I’m not good on ambient noise.  Ambient noise in this case, much to James’s chagrin, includes music.  I LOVE music, but I find it impossible to write or read if there is music (with lyrics) in the room.  James would listen to tunes–including an embarrassingly large amount of Brit bubble gum pop–24/7 if it were an option.  #sorryjames #notanoption

Despite my focus problems, I found a few times that fit for listening.  Playing with Mac on the rare-ish times when Henry is sleeping is a good one.  I do talk to Mac, but our less verbal play means the podcast isn’t distracting.  And I’m less worried any strong language.

Another time is when I’m editing photos.  I edit photos with picmonkey, and I’ve been trying to get better about batching my photo editing time.  I find this lower plane thinking click-click task suited to some distraction.  It has made something that I’m not wild about something I actually look forward to.

The other day, I even listened to a podcast while cooking!  I usually wait to start dinner until James gets home.  Cooking with two kids (literally) underfoot is frustrating at best and a recipe for disaster at worst.  So James has some time with the kids, and I have some “me time” while cooking.  SNORT.  But it does feel a little more special to have some entertainment while I’m frantically trying to dice an onion and not burn things.

Why do we podcast anyway?

But this made me wonder, what are we listening to podcasts?  And is it a good thing?  Doesn’t it seem weird on some level that we are reverting to a form of entertainment that was popular decades ago?  At first, I thought, maybe this is good that we are getting a bit more low tech.  We don’t need a screen.  We just want to listen.

But then I wondered about a more sinister side to podcasts.  You’ve seen how smartphones can be bad because they keep us from spacing out?  Without down time and boredom, you don’t daydream or have a chance to think deep thoughts.

I worry about our phones generally.  I worry about raising my kids around phones specifically.  How to balance the good side and benefits with the rudeness and headaches and crappy side?

I’m on the low phone use end of the spectrum.  As I type this, I’m not really sure where my phone is.  I’m sure it’s around.  As the caretaker of two kids, I’ve made a concerted effort to have the phone with me when we go out.  But if James is with us, I’ll probably ditch the phone.  Is this weird?   I don’t know.  Probably.

So are people using podcasts instead of phones OR are they using podcasts at times when phones aren’t convenient to squeeze in as much extra media as possible and stave off boredom?  You can podcast when you fold the laundry or cook dinner.  It makes tedious things more interesting.  But is this good?  Is it good to have a tool that creates even fewer opportunities to be alone with our thoughts?

But lately, when the end of the afternoon seems to drag on forever, I’ve been playing classical music while I play with the kids.  I know.  That makes me sound like that mom.  I really don’t know that much about classical music.  I just know that I get overwhelmed and such if I have music with words playing.  I know.  Weird.  But that’s how it is.

And the music is nice.  I’m learning things.  Maybe the kids are enjoying it.  It gives some pep to a dreary afternoon when we are stuck inside.

Would it be better if we played in silence?  I mean, not silence, but just talking to each other all original communication gangster.  I don’t know.  Maybe sometimes?  But I think sometimes there is a place for music.  And I think sometimes there is probably a place for podcasts as well.

The train has left the station.  What do we listen to next?

I blew through Serial.  But then what?  So then I thought, ooo, maybe I should write a “How to Find Your Next Awesome Podcast Listen” type post.  (I’m trying to get better about formulating attractive titles.)  But then I would need advice on how to find interesting podcasts.  Luckily, I have devised a two-step formula:

  1. Listen to what your friends like.
  2. Once you discover a podcast you like, track all of that podcaster’s work.

Here’s the formula in action.  I stumbled onto StartUp, “[a] series about what happens when someone who knows nothing about business starts one,” from a Modern Mrs. Darcy recommendation.  (A virtual, you’ve never actually met “friend” also works for the formula.)  As someone who has toyed with writing a book called something like What Happened to All the Entrepreneurs?, I’m hooked.

After StartUp, I tried Gimlet Media’s other show, Reply All, a show about the internet, hosted by PJ Vogt and Alex Goldman.  I like it.  It touches on pieces of the internet I’d never otherwise encounter.  In my can’t-even-keep-up-with-current-events state, it makes me feel a little savvy and cutting edge.

After I caught up on Reply All, I decided to check out PJ Vogt’s and Alex Goldman’s previous show TLDR.  This show is shorter.  Usually seven-ish minutes of perfect potato chip snacking.  I usually can’t eat just one.  Again, none of this is info I need to know, but some of it is downright interesting.

Which brings me to TLDR Episode #10, One Hundred Songs in a Day.  Here, the hosts profile Matt Farley, a musician who instead of making one big hit song has made thousands of no-hit-wonders.   These songs add up though, and Farley makes over $20,000 in royalties a year.

And THIS led me to Farley’s genius work, Poop Into A Wormhole:

(Henry watches the video and says, “That snail is doing a great job!”  Poop = snail.  Apparently.)

James doesn’t understand why I am so tickled by this song.  But I definitely am.  (Which is convenient considering it is going to be all poop humor all the time at this house soon.)

I think the chorus has a sort of Too Many Cooks catchiness.

I think the words are really witty.  If you are too scared to go into the wormhole, it TOTALLY makes sense to send your poop inside.  A stinky surprise!

But maybe I’m tickled for the same reason the TLDR hosts love it.  I love that this song exists at all.  It is like if I took the random songs I make up during the day, actually added music, and then shared them with the world.  I don’t think I’ll be doing this, but I love that Farley is.  Things like this make me love the internet all over again.

And that is how podcasts led me to Poop Into A Wormhole.  Maybe I should just stick to drafting real-time posts instead of crafting you 1500 word odysseys that end in poop.

Podcasts led me to Poop into a Wormhole

Do you podcast?  When do you listen?  WHAT do you listen to?  Please let me know; I need to work the formula again!

Which country is more kid friendly for travel? Hint: it rhymes with Shermany

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What makes traveling with littles easier?  Is it wide, smooth sidewalks that can accommodate strollers?  Is it speedy and prompt public transportation?  Is it having a changing table on every corner?

All of these things wouldn’t hurt.

But what is something you do every day?  Probably 3x/day.  Possibly more.  No, I’m not back on the changing tables.

I’m talking about food.  Probably in some restaurants if you are traveling.

And for this reason–not because of the unbroken sidewalks or the speedy public transit–I’m calling Germany more kid friendly for travel than Italy.  Yes, both Italy and Germany have restaurants.  But in Germany they are open.

Hofbrauhaus

Hofbrauhaus

See, Italy is on a  more relaxed, nap schedule.  Most restaurants don’t open until 12:00 or 12:30.  They shut down mid-afternoon and reopen for dinner at 7:00 or 7:30.  (I suspect you may have similar issues in countries that eat late such as Spain and France.)  This means that you can have a decent experience dining later, but it can be hard to sustain for several meals and days on end.  Even with liberal snack and pacifier usage, littles and restaurants are just tough sometimes.

At Spatenhaus

At Spatenhaus

On our trip to Munich, restaurants opened in the morning and stayed open all day long.  It was quite novel.  This meant we could beat the lunch rush at 11:30 if we wanted.  We could go to dinner and have our food by 6:00.  (We should have made more dinner reservations; things filled up.  But it worked out.)  I’m not going to lie, it was pretty convenient.

Decked out for the holidays at Der Pschorr

Decked out for the holidays at Der Pschorr

Our servers were efficient and speedy.  I’ve generally had great service in Italy, but the Germans were just humming along.  The restaurants were bustling, but I didn’t feel rushed.  Granted, it is hard to make someone feel rushed who is inhaling their food while trying to cut and distribute food to two kids.  The German beer halls we visited fit our current pace of life.

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They would not have been ideal for a romantic, lingering dinner.  I adore going out on date night and savoring multiple courses, hands held on the table in between.  Italy is perfect for this.

The German cuisine also facilitated our practically dine-and-dash approach.  You could order courses, but entrees generally came with vegetable sides so it was easy to do a one and done approach.  And I know German food is knocked as all meat and potatoes, but we had a good bit of variety.  I enjoyed a crusted fish with herbed risotto.  I had roast chicken at the Hofbrauhaus.  James really enjoyed his sides of red cabbage.  My wienerschnitzel at Andechser am Dom was accompanied by arugula and potato salad.  It was tasty, filling, and fast.

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An overheard on our trip nicely sums up the different eating philosophies.  At a restaurant in Munich, James heard a waitress seating two Italian tourists.  The waitress told them they could have the table, but for only one hour.  It took awhile for the couple to understand and when they did, they were incredulous.  “Non è possibile,” said the wife with round, disbelieving eyes.

at Spatenhaus

at Spatenhaus

I’m not a hater.  Italians make some darn tasty food.  But they do it on their own time.  I’m hoping restaurants will be easier with the kids in a few years.  For now, even though I couldn’t find a changing table in any of the dining establishments we visited in Munich, having restaurants that are open earlier makes a huge difference.

at Der Pschorr

Hofbrauhaus, Platzl 9, 80331 – We didn’t sit in the main beer hall, but had little trouble finding a table in a side room not too far from the action.  No high chairs, but we didn’t ask. 

Andechser am Dom, Weinstraße 7, 80333 – Smaller place, did have a high chair.  I have to give mad props to our waitress.  They were packed for dinner, but she let us use a table before another reserved party got there.

Spatenhaus an der Oper, Residenzstraße 12, 80333 – We got two high chairs!  And they brought coloring stuff for Henry.

Der Pschorr, Viktualienmarkt 15, 80331 – Nice open space.  Had at least one high chair.

Itinerary for me Ma

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Lucky for me as a sightseeing planner, my mom has been to Rome a few times.  This means she will be excited to see things, but we don’t feel like we have to pack in every single sight.

So I have put together a sort of wish list for my mom’s stay.  As you will see, there is plenty of flexibility.

Pasta

Pizza – maybe from Gaudi?

White wine

Red wine

Gelateria Salaria, our favorite close by gelato.

Come il Latte.  Simply the best.  Better than all the rest.

Catacombs of Priscilla

Villa Borghese

Villa Ada

Walk around downtown

A market

Montepulciano

More gardens, maybe Villa d’Este in Tivoli

Hopefully I will be able to report back on successful list completion.  The weather is not on our side this week, but we’ll do what we can and hope things will look up.  Now I must away.  Somebody couldn’t be bothered to stay asleep for all of nap time and is trying to eat my arms as I type.

 

Thoughts from my Sick 8 Month Old

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[This was written earlier.  He’s not sick again.]

Poor little guy.  My baby is having his first real illness.  Fever, cough, and runny nose.  My sleep-deprived little brain put together some thoughts from the baby as I went in to administer his first Tylenol of the day.

Hey, Mom.  Mom.  Mom. MOM.  Where are you going?  Don’t go!  Let’s stay and cuddle.  Come on, you look like you need this.  You look tired and a little out of it and, dare I say, cranky?

Ah, that’s better.  Weren’t you just saying how I never cuddle anymore?  I know I’m all independent and #bossbaby all the time, but I still love you.  Let’s have a cuddle.  This one’s on me.

Ooo, the rocker.  Good call.  Let’s get comfortable.  Not there.  Uh, not there.  Ah, yes.  That’s better, right?  I mean, I’m really comfortable!  Your arm is kind of at a funny angle, but you aren’t moving so we’re cool, right?

You have a lovely singing voice.  Were you classically trained?  NO?!?  Well, it’s beautiful.  Don’t ever stop.  Haha, just kidding.  OK, not really.  Don’t stop.  Did I say stop?

Isn’t this nice?  It’s just like when I was really little and we used to cuddle and watch crap TV and you felt kinda guilty about sending my brother to day care so that we could cuddle and watch crap TV.  It went pretty fast didn’t it?

Haha, nice try, Mom.  I know you think I want to be put back in my crib, but I am willing to make this sacrifice FOR YOU.  Don’t put me down.  You need this cuddle.  I’ll let you cuddle me instead of getting beauty sleep back in my crib.  It’s just my generous nature.  That’s right.  I’m a giver.

Is it time for more Tylenol yet?  No?  Well, that’s OK.  We’ll get through this day together, Mommy.  Promise.  I’ll be with you every step of the way.  I’ll never leave your side!  My brother can take care of himself I’m sure.  Toddlers are known for their resilience and ability to entertain themselves.  You and me.  Let’s have a cuddle.

How to fight jet lag LIKE A BOSS

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1.12_Mac collage_jet lag

Ya’ll, my mom is coming this week!  She has to eat all the pasta, drink all the wine, and spend all the time with grandkids.  I’ve discovered that I can just barely squeeze between the carseats so we have plans to visit gardens and we just booked a trip to Tuscany.  I won’t be able to feel my legs, but it is going to be legend – wait for it and grab your pizza – DARY.

All of this means she needs to hit the ground running.  Which is not easy to do when you are six time zones off your game.  Also, unfortunately, traveling east is harder to recover from.

To come up with a game plan, I took to the internets to devise a foolproof jet lag battle strategy.  Here’s the best advice I could find.

Prepare before you go.  Some suggest shifting your schedule before you go.  Others say–and I agree–that there is no point giving yourself jet lag before you leave.  My mom is a busy lady.  She doesn’t have time to mess around with schedule shifting.

But there are things she can do.  Leaving home well rested seems like a sound strategy.  Unfortunately, if I know my mom, she’ll be running around until the last minute getting things ready and taking care of loose ends.  But please try, Mom!  Get some sleep, eat decently, you know the deal.  We have a washer/dryer.  Once I figure out how to undo the child lock Henry somehow turned on this morning, I promise I’ll wash your clothes every day if you want.  No need to stress on packing!  (Except for all those things I keep asking you to bring.  OK, good talk, thanks in advance.)

On the plane.  Sleep is a good strategy.  Some suggest sleep aids, but my mom is a little crunchy and she won’t have time to test these before so drugs are out.  Busting out the noise canceling headphones and sleep mask could help.

I know your vacation starts on the plane, but avoiding caffeine and booze should help.  Drink water like it’s your job.

And jump into your new schedule on the plane.  Several sites recommend resetting your watch immediately when you board.  The jet lag is all in your head, Cricket-san.

At arrival.  My mom’s flight gets in at 8:00 AM.  That means she has a long day ahead of her.  The answer seems to be sunlight.  The internets tout sunlight as being one of the best ways to hasten your transition.  But not just indiscriminate sunlight.  For my mom, an eastbound traveler, she should avoid morning sun and get afternoon sun.  Science types even go as far to wear sunglasses on the plane and at arrival to limit morning sun.  My mom likes the sun.  And sunglasses.  If we can keep her from napping, it shouldn’t be hard to get her outside in the afternoon.  Hopefully we won’t be having another rainy day.

Some suggest faking the sun by taking melatonin.  I don’t see this being in our strategy though.  One, crunchy.  Two, if you mess up or mistime your dose, it could actually set you back on your jet lag journey.

Bringing our “A” guest game could help my mom as well.  We’ll have the room ready with the light blocking shades and comphy sheets.  When it is finally time to sleep, I’ll do everything I can to make it a good night.  Absence of crying children sadly not guaranteed.

So that’s the plan.  Hope my mom isn’t burning the candle at both ends getting ready, promise her plenty of wine in Italy if she can avoid on the plan, and run her ragged in the afternoon sun when she gets here.  I have trained minions who excel at running people ragged.  Ideally, my mom would power through Day 1 and go to bed close to a normal time.  If she’s majorly flagging, we may negotiate a short nap.  Sounds fun, right?  OK, ready, break!  Ya’ll my mom is coming!!!!

Any other jet lag fighting words of wisdom?  I’ll let you know how it goes!

Friday Funnies

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Aren’t internet videos the best?  I swear I could be having the worst day ever, but I could see a crazy cat video and I would perk up at least a little bit.  Sometimes instead of watching TV, James and I just sit and scroll through Uproxx and watch interesting sounding videos.  #cheapdate

I’ve found a critical mass of videos so thought I’d send you off with a laugh into your lovely weekend.  Cheers!

I am not on board with teaser trailers for commercials, but I do heart Mindy Kaling.  Is it really almost the Super Bowl?

Speaking of football, NFL 2015 bad lip reading is out.  I could literally watch this over and over all day.

You know Drunk History?  Well, this is similar, but with kids telling a bible story.  A question for the ages: what would Jesus do about Frozen?

You guys are probably over this, but I am also tickled every time by Salt-N-Pepa’s Geico Push It ad.  #borninthe80s #childofthe90s

I wish there was a video of this.

Wishing you fun, relaxation, and cat videos.

One Market to Rule Them All*

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Continuing our German vacation saga from December.  Don’t worry, I think I only have two more posts on this.  Three, tops.

Germany’s best Christmas market is in Nuremberg.  Full stop.  I have not personally visited all the cities in Germany to compare, but that has never stopped me from making sweeping pronouncements before.

I mean, if this not-at-all-doctored photo doesn’t sell you, I don’t know what will.

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But first we had to get to Nuremberg.  For this, we turned to the ICE (fast) train with Deutsche Bahn.  We were originally going to split our time between Nuremberg and Munich, but decided to just do a day trip to Nuremberg when we realized the ICE would be a little over an hour.  (It turned out to be closer to an hour and a half.)

We ended up paying more than I hoped, but this was because we (1) bought the tickets the day of and (2) did not want to commit to a specific return train.  Trains run from Nuremberg to Munich every 30 minutes, and I didn’t want to pin us down.  If we had booked in advance and/or picked specific trains, the ticket would have been much cheaper.  I didn’t want to book in advance because we were playing the weather by ear.  It would have been nicer to get a cheaper ticket, but I figure we paid a premium for the flexibility and for not having to deal with schlepping all of our stuff to a different city for an overnight.  Twice actually because we would have had to return to Munich for the flight.

We opted for reserved seats on the way there, but we would have been OK without it.  We didn’t have any trouble getting seats on the return.

They have ticket kiosks which are very easy to use, but after having some questions, we opted to speak to a real person.  I was excited that I could have conducted the whole thing auf Deutsch!  I eventually asked the guy if we could switch because it was easier consulting with James in English without first having to translate everything.

I hoped Henry would be more jazzed about the train.  I mean, he was excited, but the countryside looked sort of drab and gray on the way there and pitch black on the way back.  He was more into making his dad walk him all over the train.

I will say, preparing to exit the train with the kids and our day trip gear was a little stressful.  The train doesn’t stop for long at each station.  This is great for speeding along on your trip, but less great when you are like CRAP-I-have-to-grab-all-the-bags-and-stuff-kids-in-coats-and-AHHH.  But it all worked out.

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Munich Hauptbahnhof

Nuremberg on its own is an insanely cute German town.  Cobblestones, river running through it, fachwerk, pedestrian zones.  I don’t think I appreciated just how nice of a place it was on its own when I saw it ten years ago.

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The market completely fills the main square.  There are also a few side markets.

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Don’t stare directly into the eyes of the creepy children on top

We enjoyed the heidelbeer gluhwein.  We really enjoyed the nurnberger bratwurst and hazelnut strudel.

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Here’s the famous fountain, the Schöner Brunnen.

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Spin the golden ring for a wish to come true.

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Kaiserburg, the castle, is a hike up the hill.

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After hunting for some kid-friendly tips on the internets, we had an afternoon tea at Cafe Violetta.  (Nuremberg also has a train museum and toy museum that sounded pretty cool for kids, but we didn’t get to those.)  At first, I worried that we made a terrible mistake.  Downstairs is like a cross between an antique store and a fancy coffee shop. The cafe is kind of like being in your cozy Aunt’s house or maybe a common room at Hogwarts.  Plush furniture that doesn’t match, but it goes.  Nooks and alcoves.  It looked great, but not for kids.

Eventually, we found the train table upstairs.  We stalked the squashy couch beside it and eventually had a great time unwinding after being out in the cold drizzle.  Henry was obsessed with the table.  It may have been his favorite thing of the entire trip.  This is why two year olds make crappy tourists.  I could show him the Sistine Chapel and he would probably be like oooo is that a light switch?  (Mac would probably be like LUNCH.  I remember in either first or second grade, the Sistine Chapel National Geographic one was super scandalous.  It was definitely passed around the room and whispered about.)

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And here is the market stretching as far as the eye can see.

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It was a cold and drizzly day, but I’m glad we went.  It’s funny; when I walked around Nuremberg as a student more than ten years ago, I never really thought ahead to what the future might bring.  I didn’t picture some day returning and trying to show my two kids around this market that I loved so much.  Even though I didn’t picture it, I’m glad we were able to make it happen.  Now I’ll just have to bring them back when they can actually appreciate it!

*Only meant to be a silly Lord of the Rings reference.