Usher featuring will.i.am - OMG

Watching my daughters dance

So yesterday we were hanging by the pool; Elisabet, Sophie, Jordi and moi, and Elisabet put on some music. Both Sophie and Elisabet started dancing. I loved watching them move! There is something about watching young (and quite attractive) folks move to music that I so enjoy. Maybe it was the day; sunny, not a cloud in sight, hot and being around a cool pool, which made the moment poignant. Yes I did use that word, poignant; keen or strong in mental appeal: a subject of poignant interest, affecting or moving the emotions, because that's how I felt watching them. It's not easy for me to stop thinking about what I 'need' to be doing or what I 'should' be doing. But for that brief moment I was just aware of them and their physical beauty and of their carefree attitudes and I loved it. Kind of sappy but it really was a great DAILURE.

Daily Drag-'Dailrag'

Husband Jordi has been having 'issues' with his stomach for years. Last year he had an attack and the doctor said his "enzyme level" was extremely high. He's just had all sorts of tests, including an MRI and now they want to "see" him next week. I know I shouldn't panic, before he gets the results, but that's exactly what I'm doing.

Dailure: Chatting with Alexandra

That girl makes me laugh! She can change my mood completely with her funny stories. Her love of life is quite contagious.

VTS training

I have been asked to go to Atlanta, Ga., on May 31st, to train a bunch of teachers, in VTS, for four days. I do like to train! I also appreciate the money I make doing it.

Dinner

Preparing a good dinner; healthy, tasty, and aesthetically pleasing, has become a challenge. Now that we are a full family, Elisabet just arrived home from college, it's my goal to sit down with everyone, at night and have a family dinner. But I do run out of creative ideas. And with a bit of a time constraint I find myself scrambling. Then end result is well worth the effort. I love having a meal together. Sometimes the banter is about politics, sometimes it's just a family squabble, but whatever the topic of conversation it's good to be together.

Barcelona

We went back to visit Barcelona and to celebrate my mother in-law's 90th birthday. I hadn't spent time in the city in many years and I really enjoyed being there. We walked and walked and walked. We ate fresh fresh tapas and I saw family and friends. We went to the Picasso museum and it had been expanded quite a bit. I was shocked at the amount of tourists that had invaded the city. Tourism isn't 'hurting' in that city. We were only there for a week and it was too short. I even went running on the careterra del aguas. It is up on Tipidabo and overlooks the beautiful city.

Daily Drag (that seemed to drag on and on and on...)

Yesterday, April 28, 2010

The day went from bad to worse. It started with my husband yelling at me bc I filled out the census form and "shouldn't have included Elisabet bc she goes to college and doesn't actually live here anymore!" Then I got yelled at a couple of docents (volunteers) because I mucked up a tour. Then a great friend, giving a tour,doing a fantastic job, got angry (rightfully so because I upstaged her). So I ended up taking her to lunch and spent the hour trying to make things right.

She sent me an email and this is what I wrote back (she thought I should submit it to some publication but the blog is just as good):

Thanks Esther. My day....it only got worse; starting with the dog,
> jumping out of the car, when we went to the 'doggie' park, and
> possibly tearing a ligament. I had to take her (actually Sophie and
> Daniel carried her) the 'Emergency Pet Room', where they 'felt'
> her leg and gave me two prescriptions. The bill came to $134.00.
> My credit card didn't work and they didn't accept checks so I had to
> phone Jordi to come and pay the 'nice' people. He got all crazy
> because they wouldn't accept his credit card "over the phone" and
> decided he was going to Go Postal on them. So I took the kids and
> high tailed it out. He didn't end up Going Postal but is pretty
> angry, again, at me. That all was followed by a melt down from
> Daniel. Actually, we ended up having a fantastic discussion! I asked
> him to "explain to me the difference between one paint ball gun and
> the other". The other being $300 more than the second, which was
> replaced by the first, which he said "wasn't efficient enough".
> Anyway, the kid KNOWS paintball guns and all of their features. At
> least I know he's learning something. We ended up agreeing that he is
> very capable and will earn the money, on his own, to buy that gun
> (even tho I don't like it). I told him I would "help" make signs to
> advertise him. He will try and give young kids drum lessons over the
> summer. He was good with this idea. Man, is it hard to raise kids.
> But I really felt a break
> through and I think your advice about helping out really helped.
> Thanks.
>
> So I'm am up, at 5:30, ready to face a day that I am SURE will be much
> much better than yesterday. Hope you have a good one with Daniel.

Anticipation!

As much as I like vacations I think part of the fun is the actual planning of them; where are we going? what new sites will we see, what fun restaurants will we eat in? what old friends will we see? We are going to Barcelona, on May 6th, for my mother-in-law's 90th birthday. I'm looking forward to getting away, alone, with Jordi, seeing my in-laws and being back in Spain. It's been 10 years since we've had a trip, alone, and it's much needed. It's been 3 years since we've been back to Spain. And as much as I like to travel thinking about traveling is almost as fun. I'm usually never disappointed.

Kavita Ramdas: Radical women, embracing tradition | Video on TED.com

Kavita Ramdas: Radical women, embracing tradition | Video on TED.com