the OTHER mother

Pearl's New Bike

An Ode to Moms by Billy Collins

My friend Nancy Ford sent me this video of Billy Collins reading his poem "The Lanyard." If you've ever been a parent, a child, a teacher, a summer camper, or some combination thereof-- this poem is a MUST.

If you watch it, let me know whether it makes you laugh or cry.

Float Like a Cannonball!

Here are two quick clips from Pearl and Carrie's last swim lesson of the summer. You can see what they've learned. The cannonball activity that Carrie does is actually a float test. She passed.

Winter in Summer Conundrum

Count Along with Carrie

Carrie, ready and waiting for the beeper to beep, saying that her lunch was ready, is counting.  At the end of the 29 second video, it's a dog who distracts her from her agonizing wait. A dog named Daisy. And when lunch arrived, she insisted I take "that black thing" off the burger. Yes, friends, she ate it without the meat. Carrie was in true form today. Wish you were there!

Swimming Lessons

This morning Marcia taught at the hospital, and I took Pearl and Carrie to swimming lessons. It was my first time. I was impressed with how much the girls have improved, even in the past week or so. (video = 7 seconds)

Carrie Sings the Aligator Song

Time = 40 seconds

Happy Mother's Day to You

Longtime readers may or may not recall this song Pearl did when she was two. Hope you're having a great day! (Time = 14 seconds)

Today I am

home sick. Meaning I am sick and therefore stayed home from work. As opposed to homesick, which is not all that different really. The cars pass by randomly but I don't see them. I hear lawn mowing outside the window. The machinery needs an oil change; even I can tell from the sound of metal whining. The dog is snoring. Time is moving but so slowly. I keep checking on the clocks. Must remember. Brave One DVD too scary. Visitor DVD, kinda slow. Like my me. Maybe perfect? Someone has left fresh cut flowers in a vase. People are living in his apartment. They leave. They return. I watch the movie, minutes passing. I am them. I am me again.

Grrrlville: Impossible

Happy Holidays to you!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

The Final 5 DVD Winners are...

Kristi, Kelly, Elswhere, Guusje, and Jess.  Congrats also to Nutty, the alternate from Monday who will get the DVDs because one of the 5 winners declined the prize.  I have emailed the winners this morning.  Congrats and thanks to everyone for participating.  You rock. And of course, thanks also to my superhero blogging partner this week, Dana Rudolph of Mombian. 

Final Day of The L Word DVD Giveaway: Enter to Win

Okay.  You've voted. The elections are behind us. And today is your last chance to win The L Word Season 5 DVD set. I've teamed up with Dana Rudolph of Mombian, and together we are giving away 20 DVD sets.

Winning is easy. You have until 11:59 PM Central time. To enter the contest, leave a comment today (U.S. central time) answering this question:

What is something that you've Lost that you wish you could get back? Stories, welcome but optional.

The 5 winners will be chosen randomly and announced tomorrow (10/6/08).

THE L WORD returns to DVD with THE COMPLETE FIFTH SEASON on October 21ST in a collectible 4-disc set. DVD includes all 12 dramatic and deliciously provocative Fifth season episodes from Showtime’s successful long-running series featuring all the beauty, chaos and complexities of a group of women who inhabit Los Angeles’ lesbian community plus behind-the-scenes special features.

© 2008 Showtime Networks Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Rules and restrictions: 

* U.S. and Canada residents only, please.

* You may only enter once per day.

* You can only win once.

* Marcia, you can't win.  Sorry!

Entry times will be based on the time you submit the comment. I retain the right to remove entries in the case of inappropriate content.

Make sure to leave a valid e-mail address with your comment! (Don’t leave a postal address, though. If you win, I’ll contact you by e-mail about shipping.)

Change of Heart for San Diego Mayor

Thanks, Lori Hahn, for posting this video of Mayor Jerry Sanders explaining his decision to support gay marriage. Below is a letter Marcia wrote to the San Diego mayor applauding his decision.

Dear Mayor Sanders,

I just saw a video of you and your wife on YouTube in which you
announced that you will sign the resolution passed by your city
council to file a brief in support of gay marriage. Thank you.

Last December my extended family came from many parts of the United
States to spend Christmas in your beautiful city San Diego. We were
not disappointed–the beaches were pristine, the skies blue, the city
stunning. There is only one problem with San Diego, we all agreed:
it’s too conservative.

You see, my sister and I are both lesbians with life-long partners and
2 kids each; our dad is a retired bishop in the United Methodist
Church who works unfailingly for justice for all; our mom is an
idealist who believes in unconditional love for everyone; and our
brother, his wife, and their 2 kids are activists committed to making
the world a better place. We are an amazing family, if I do say so
myself.

And your family, too, is amazing, if I do say so myself! Your change
of heart over gay marriage left me in tears. Truly. Transformation is
always courageous, but you get lots of bonus points because you chose
(okay, no doubt you felt forced) to explain your change in public to
your constituents and the world.

I just want you to know that I applaud your dedication to
enlightenment and equality. I hope that I will be as brave as you
have been if (no, WHEN!) the turn arises for me to grow or change my
views about an issue. You are an inspiration. Keep up your good
work.

And maybe our family will see you next Christmas in San Diego after
all. It would be an honor.

Best wishes,
Marcia in Texas

Meet the Real Pearl

As you may have noticed in your own family, having only one parent working can make finances a little tricky. I've been holding off as long as I could but finally this weekend I ordered a new Dell computer. Part of the irresistibility of this purchasing moment was that the laptop came with a free FLIP camcorder. The computer hasn't arrived, yet but the camcorder arrived yesterday. I popped some batteries into this cell phone sized gadget, pressed play, and made this, my first video.  (time = 1:43)

We Want Cake!

While I'm on the topic of my own opinions, here is my favorite kid song of the month: "Seven" by They Might Be Giants.  You can hear/see it in 2 different versions. The first video link is one of TMBG performing the song.  The second one is an animated music video of the song in the TMBG series of podcasts for kids. Warning about the song: it's sticky.

The Youth of America

As you may remember, I work for Writers in the Schools. This week we are hosting our annual Young Writers Reading Series.  Here is a video (48 seconds) of Raphael, age 6, from last year's reading. His poem is called "Explaining Colors."

click here to see the original post with text of the poem

The Making of "Puppies to the Rescue 1"

Pearl came to me Sunday morning saying she wanted to make a DVD. She needed help.  Okay, I said. How can I help? I want to trace a circle onto this paper.  Would you cut it out for me with scissors?

So I cut out a circle of white paper, and Pearl drew puppies and sunsets with colored pencils. 

Now I need some glass, she announced after the picture was complete. Oh, and the DVD will be called  Puppies to the Rescue 1.

Glass?  Yes, Pearl said, a circle of glass so I can make the DVD.

I guess that because DVDs are shiny, she assumed they were made of glass. Also she seemed to assume that if she attached this picture and title onto a DVD, she could insert them into the DVD player and see the entire story unfold on the television.

Let's see, I said. We can make a DVD, but there might be a few steps more to it than it might seem. 

So I took dictation for her in her 100 page book,explaining that to make the DVD we would need a story first.  Pearl told me two stories, "Puppies to the Rescue 1" and "The Elephants Will Be Kings."  She rattled them off so fast that I only jotted down a third of the words.  I read them back to her, but she was--in her mind--on to the next step.

Marcia is the family filmmaker, and she helped Pearl videotape and edit the story that afternoon. The story that Pearl narrates in the video is different from the one she told me.  In neither version of "Puppies to the Rescue" do the puppies rescue anyone.  Perhaps we must wait for Puppies 2? 

As I mentioned in the previous post, she was disappointed in the results.  But she has responded well to all the encouragement from the family.  Carrie has watched the clip dozens of times. If a sequel does surface, you will be the first to know.

"They chewed on horrible shoes!"

Blurry Beach Video

Happy 2008!

This is my first experiment with FLIP video.  Thanks to S & J for the lesson.  (time 3:15)

This Is Not a Gift

Marcia's family has a no-gift policy this year, which is how our holiday slide show got its name.  Click play to view the past year in Grrrlville condensed down to 11 minutes.  Happy holidays, dear reader!

It's Grrrville 2007

Carrie is Hungry

I've been combing through my archives tonight and found a little clip of Carrie eating lunch.  She was 13 months old.  (Now she's 2!)  It was made with one of those disposable camcorders, and the quality is poor, but I still thought it might amuse you.  Find it in the side bar on the right or click on the icon below.

Virginia Xmas 1206

AfterEllen's Alter Ego (That's Me)

Yes, I want to write about The L Word, only I am even more woefully behind than ever.  AfterEllen is the first blog to cover these TV spectacles, and I am the very last.  Just finished Season 3 this week so bear with me.

Just to remind you where Season 3 ends, Dana has died, Shane has left Carmen alone at the altar, post-menopausal Kit is pregnant, and Helena has been cut off from her wealthy family.  Some rough stuff, right?

With characters in, characters out, have your impressions changed?   Who's irritating?  Who's sexy? Who would be your friend? What do you think about Max and the trans narrative? Were you surprised that Shane flew the coop?

Here are a few randoms from yours truly.  Alice is the ultimate lesbian friend. She's funny, smart, loyal, gossipy, and cute.  For some reason, I never had a clear sense of Carmen.  She doesn't stand out for me. On the DVD bonus footage, a bunch of women said Carmen was there favorite character, so I thought that was interesting.  As you may recall, Jenny has always annoyed me.  She doesn't seem like a writer, and her character doesn't ring true for me. Max is interesting to me, in his lostness.  I found the scenes between Dylan and Helena very hot. I'm letting my authority issues hang out in saying this, but Helena is sexy as was Marina in Season 1.  Maybe I'm just a sucker for foreign accents?

So tell me your thoughts! And don't worry about spoiling Season 4 for me.  I can take it.

From Pearl with Love

For all you moms out there, this one is for you.  (Time = 14 seconds)

Happy Birthday, Valentine!

PJ Parade

Details from our Weekend

• Yes, friends, crazy Jojo (Carrie) can sit and twist and shout.  She is a tiny, human tumbleweed, rolling across the prairie of our lives.  And oh, what a screamer!
• Pearl has learned the names of at least 60 of the trains from Thomas the Tank Engine from the toys, the books, and the videos.  Marcia has decided that as long as Pearl is--at this developmental moment--capable of memorizing so much stuff so fast that she's going to try teaching her something useful, such as the name of all the birds.  Or Spanish.  Go Mommy go Pearl go!
• We have the most wonderful social worker helping us with our adoption, and the home visit went well last Friday. The craziest moment of the morning was when Carrie had just gotten up from her nap.  Marcia had taken Pearl to go look for a panda bear (emergency!), and I was holding Carrie in my lap, and I sneezed.  The loud sound scared her so much that she began to sob.  And when the only face she could see was the social worker's (I held her facing out), she began to shed huge, marble-sized tears.  As soon as she saw Marcia return, however, all was well.  Just in the past week, Carrie has figured out that some people are strangers.
• We went to a pride party Saturday night.  It was fun, and we also saw what we thought to be a glimpse into the future.  Among new (to her) folks, Pearl usually sticks close to Mommy and Baba.  At this party, however, she met a 3 year old girl and the two of them played with dolls and a doll house for 2 hours.  Pearl didn't even stop to eat dinner.  The 8 year old girls were so great with the younger ones, even letting them dance to music with them.  At one point, Marcia interrupted the dancing to see if Pearl needed a potty break.  Pearl gave her an adamant NO and waved her out the room!
• Lately I have gotten addicted to a new (to me) computer game.  If you like word games such as Scrabble or Boggle, do NOT click on the link for Babble.  You have been warned.
  
• Inspired by Shannon, I have been trying to cook more lately.  As usual, my intentions are much more impressive than the reality, but I have been serving up whole grains, vegetables, and other good foods when possible.  All yummy too, I might.
• We started a modified cry-it-out routine with Carrie about 10 days ago, and to our great surprise she and we are all doing well with that.  She's slept until at least 4 a.m. most nights since then.  A light at end of the tunnel of sleeplessness?  We shall see.
• Happy Pride!  Have a great week.

Two Lollipops (Take Two)

Here's a second version of the video.  I'm hoping that this one is more "user friendly."  Let me know.

Two Lollipops

I'm trying to post a short video of Pearl, but I'm struggling with the technology.  I found a program called VideoEgg which looks great, but this clip is a little bit too long.  Tonight I will edit it down some more and post it a better way.  For now, though, let me know whether this actually works for you or not.

Download two_lollipops_106_for_web_2.mov