Lake Tahoe Weekend

"I need to relax." When most women hear their husbands say this, they might expect that he'll turn on the TV to watch the game, or if he means he needs to leave town to do it, maybe head to a warm weather locale and sit by a pool with a mai tai. I have no such man. When my man wants to head out of town to "relax," it really means that we're going somewhere we don't live so that he can engage in some activity that done improperly just might well kill you.

So, last weekend we packed up the trusty SUV with our luggage and our Baby Benadryl medicated toddler to prevent her from vomiting in the car (hallelujah for Baby Benadryl!), and headed to Lake Tahoe.

In the old days, Sebastian had speed records. He'd aim to get to Tahoe, for example, on a motorcycle in traffic in, say, 3 hours. It takes a wee bit longer now.

Part of the pros and cons to the toilet training business: No more changing diapers! Lots of bathroom stops! While en route, after having already recently made a pee-pee stop, Sophia again told us of her need to go. I (unwisely) shot a look of annoyance before we got off the freeway. After stopping at two gas stations to find they had no facilities, Sophia then informed us that she didn't really have to go. I (again unwisely) flashed the annoyed look and we got back on the freeway only to discover later she went old-school -- i.e., in her Hello Kitty underpants. After doing this three more times over the weekend, we finally had a big sit down and explained to Sophia that accidents are to be avoided at all costs -- yes, even if it means not setting any new land speed records.

Lesson for Mommy: no matter what or where we are in the future my job is to very graciously and happily be a potty locater.

We finally got to Lake Tahoe before dark and settled in. Back at home, Sophia has gone to the Mission Cliffs Climbing Gym with Papa and has been asking to take her there again. So here we are -- on our way to Emerald Bay for her first big outdoor climbing adventure (albeit, without the ropes or equipment. We can wait until she's a little older, like 3 for that). The autumn leaves were gorgeous, it was warm in the sun, and she was a trooper. The picture above is the hill we climbed.

When we found out we were having a girl, I envisioned a little tomboy, like what we have -- before we were here, I could always see her spinning at top speed on the merry-go-round at the park, rock climbing or surfing or doing muay thai with her Papa.

But today she said she wanted a dress like a ballerina, so I guess I'm heading to the store for a tu-tu, too. . .

Sophie's Favorite Things

One of Sophie's favorite things (besides ice cream and chicken burritos) is a good book. Her favorite, for the moment, is Woodpecker Forest by Tejima. She came across it at her old co-op, and we don't own it, so I just keep checking it out from the library. It's free, I can barely store all of her books as it is, and I figure she'll get bored of it soon enough and move on to another.

It's by a Japanese author that has been translated. Being Japanese, it's a very quiet, understated story about a woodpecker and his growth into an adult woodpecker, ultimately moving out on his own. The book is illustrated in equally simple manner with subtle colors, and it almost looks like it was carved into wood then hand-painted.

What makes it funny is Sophia's very American take on it. She's somehow taken a simple story about a bird and made it into an action movie.

Here's how it invariably goes when I read her the book. The italics are Sophie's chiming in.

In the middle of a faraway forest it is almost spring. The warm wind carries the sound of pecking through the trees. PECK! PECK! PECK! PECK!

Up in a tall tree, a mother and father woodpecker take turns making a hole for their nest. This is where they will raise their family. THERE'S PAPA! AND THERE'S MOMMY!

They find ants and other insects in old stumps. EEW! YUCKY! I don't like eating ants, do you Mommy? LOOK! THERE'S THE STUMP! That's Papa on the tree stump!

The forest echoes with the sounds of their pecking and the voices of the young birds. PECK! PECK! PECK! PECK!

Soon the chirping of cicadas begins. [Note: I didn't know how to pronounce cicadas at first and did it incorrectly.] Sophie: It's "si-KAH-duhs, Mommy." Me: "No, baby, I looked it up and it's "si-KAY-duhs." [Now we go back-and-forth every time several times about the correct pronunciation. I can already see that the teens are gonna be bad.]

The baby woodpeckers grown bigger every day. [Sophia pointing to the picture of the three baby woodpeckers:] LOOK! THERE'S ME! And that's Lida and that's Sophie Lee.

The time comes for the young woodpeckers to try their wings. With his parents calling, the bravest of the three flies out of the nest. [Sophia really getting excited now:) LOOK! HE'S FLYING! HE'S FLYING! THAT'S ME!

The young bird clings to a big tree and waits for his father to feed him. All day he clings to the tree. HE'S ON THE TREE! HE'S GONNA WAIT THERE FOR HIS PAPA!

When the moon rises and the owls begin to hoot, the bravest young woodpecker is afraid. [Imitating an owl:] WHO! WHO! WHO! HE'S SO SCARY! [Meaning, actually, that the woodpecker is so scared.] I'm not afraid. Giovanni is scared of the dark. Remember, Mommy? Giovanni was sooo scared of the dark in Mexico. I'm not afraid of the dark. . . [This is about where I usually ignore her and continue to read.]

A hollow tree full of woodpecker holes seems to stare at him. It's dark now, Mommy. He's so scary.

A strange sound fills the forest. [Silence at last. Sophia's listening for the strange sound.]

It's as if all of the woodpecker trees in the forest are laughing. [Big fake laughter]HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

The young woodpecker calls out for his parents. MOMMYYYYYYYY!

Then he hears the sound of wild pecking close by. PECK! PECK! PECK! PECK! Look - la luna! [Sophia pointing to the picture of the moon]

He things he sees his father, huge against the sky. All the trees are silent. PAPAAAAAA!!!!

At daybreak, his father appears out of the mist. His papa came back!

The young bird's wings grow stronger. He learns from his parents how to hunt for food, and not to be frightened of hollow trees. I'm not afraid of trees. Remember Giovanni, in Mexico? He was afraid of the dark.

When snow falls on the mountains, it is time for the young woodpecker to live on his own. LOOK! Snow! Snow is so cold. I was in the snow once when I was a baby. It's so cold. Ice cream is cold. [This is about where I start reading over her.]

In the middle of the cold winter night, he awakens and sees the forest glittering under the full moon.
LOOK! LA LUNA!

A dead tree covered with snow seems to stare at him, but he isn't afraid. He remembers the first night away from the nest. And remembers the way his father filled the whole night sky. Those are stars, Mommy.

Over the woodpecker's forest the stars are shining.

From far away comes the hoot of an owl. YAAAAAYYYY! THE WOODPECKER'S NOT AFRAID!!!


Honestly, I don't know how she can take such a quietly serene book and turn it into a action-packed thriller, but she manages.

Maybe she has a future in Hollywood, you know, if the astronaut or pirate thing don't work out.

Halloween's Coming!

Halloween's coming!

To my German Familie, Halloween's a big deal in the U.S.

People, young and old, cram into overcrowded and overpriced Halloween Superstores at the last moment, frantically searching out that perfect costume (for women, something trampy; for men, something that requires the least amount of effort) to wear to their various Halloween parties/dances/festivals. Until they shut it down due to gang shootings, about 10,000 people would head to The Castro in San Francisco for Halloween fun, to drink, and mostly, check out the freaks. We Americans spend $5 Billion/year on Halloween. Yes, Halloween is that big.

But back when I was a kid, Halloween was a much lower keyed, "kid's only" night that involved a costume -- usually homemade, unless you lived with our decidedly uncrafty family (no offense, Ma) -- running door to door to say "Trick Or Treat!" and accumulate free candy. If you were a bad kid, which I was not, it was also a good time to create some havoc, toilet paper the nerd's house on the next block, and make a nuisance of yourself. Next to Christmas (is a Christmas-celebrating atheist family hypocritical?) Halloween was my favorite time of year!

Now little Sophie's finally gotten old enough to appreciate this little fake holiday. Last year, I bought her a race car driver costume and Sebastian took her trick-or-treating while I handed out candy at home.

For her first Halloween, Sebastian had to be pushed, hard and repeatedly, to get out the door, asking me things like, "I don't get what we're trying to do. Are we like beggars going to people's door asking for free stuff? Can't I just go buy her some candy?" Silly Sebastian and his German ways. . . He'll learn. Here in America, we like free stuff from the neighbors!

This year, without thinking of Halloween, I brought up a conversation with Sophia. I thought we were having the "What do you wanna be when you grow up?" conversation. I planned on artfully guiding the conversation toward "You can be anything you want to be when you grow up!" I hoped to hear doctor or teacher or something. Somehow the conversation took an unanticipated turn.

But first, I thought we were talking about the same thing. "I want to be an astronaut." I smiled brightly and asked her why, thinking we'd talk about the stars and going into space. She proceeded to tell me about all of the wonderful accessories astronauts get to wear. She likes the jumpsuit action, apparently.

I asked Sophie if she liked anything else about being an astronaut, praying that she wouldn't launch into a discussion about the fabulousness of having your own rocket ship, and she finally concluded that it's cool they get to "go high in outer space." Yay! Mission accomplished! I successfully groomed our little girl into a person with goals and aspirations; someone who wants to learn science and grow and be someone!

Then she mentioned that she'd also like to be a pirate. They have cool boats.

She is, in so many ways, her father's daughter.