Zeno's Bar & Grill

It’s official. I am a Bad Mom^TM. Today, I sent Anna, my oldest, to school with a hardboiled egg in her lunch. Except that it wasn’t. Hard boiled, that is. Why then, I ask, was it in a bowl in the fridge instead of the egg carton? We’ll probably never know.

Anyway, she ended up with raw egg all over her lunch and backpack and had to have an emergency hot lunch. So now the secret is out. And on only the third day of school…I guess there’s nowhere to go from here but up.

--Melanie

I can’t quite figure out why I’m happy to see Martha Stewart making a comeback. I was never much of a fan of her particular brand of relentless perfection. Only now, after all her much-publicized trials and tribulations, is she beginning to win me over.

After all, there she is, fresh outta jail, looking better than ever on the cover of the latest issue of Martha Stewart Living, showing off her detention ankle bracelet (paired with stylish pantsuit and heels, natch) at a news conference to promote her new live daytime show and watching her stock climb back up from the depths of about $9 per share at the height of her ImClone trading scandal to $31.69 per share at close yesterday.

Maybe it’s the fact that her new show will present a more realistic version of events (the preview I saw included a clip where a gigantic blown glass sphere slips in slo mo from Martha’s outstretched hands and shatters on the floor). Martha for a new millennium, warts and all? I, for one, am hoping she’ll finally give all the aspiring Perfect Moms and everyone else a break.

Or maybe there’s just something inspiring about someone who takes a licking and keeps on ticking…on national television no less!

--Melanie

It might soon require a Ph.D. to decipher the code of maternity clothes available from Mimi Maternity. According to a blurb in the News-Press yesterday, moms-to-be can now choose from a bewildering array of styles for their maternity bottoms: No Belly, All-around Belly, Classic Belly, Pull-On Belly, Miracle Belly…and the dreaded Under Belly! I’m glad I was pregnant before the Under Belly came into style. Yes, I know it's incredibly popular right now...Call me old-fashioned (or maybe scared), but I don’t even flash my midriff when I’m not pregnant!

--Melanie

Yesterday I decided to tackle the Everest of paperwork that I’d been tossing onto my desk for the past two weeks. I made this decision in the nick of time as several forms for my kids’ respective schools were due that day. I got out my pen and began the tedious task of filling in our name, address, etc. (Don’t they already have that information, since it somehow managed to find its way to my door?) Feeling a bit giddy from the ink fumes I began imagining filling in the true answers to some of these questions…

What method of discipline do you use at home?
I threaten, bribe or if they’re really getting on my nerves I send them to their rooms.

How does the child usually respond?
He either laughs or sticks his tongue out at me.

What is your child’s favorite indoor activity?
Coloring (on the walls) and Watching TV.

What is your child’s favorite outdoor activity?
Chasing his sister with a stick.

--Kelly

Yesterday was my birthday. To celebrate reaching the ripe old age of 34, I got a babysitter and had a day in the city with my friend Carolyn. We started out by going to a decidedly non-child-friendly Italian place on Randolph Street. If the location wasn't enough to tip us off, the wall lined with thousands of empty wine bottles precariously stacked onto one another certainly was. I could only imagine darling Zach or Piper deciding to remove one from the bottom and having them come crashing down onto the sheet metal tables and chairs.

The food was delicious and I enjoyed every bite of the center of the bread and left the crust on my plate. Since I didn’t have to share my lunch with anyone I ordered the goat cheese rigatoni and sprinkled it with extra red pepper – yum!

After lunch, Carolyn I popped into some non-kid friendly stores: Judith Ripka, Gucci, and Tod’s. At Tod’s I splurged and bought myself a pair of beautiful orange leather Degas Ballerina shoes. I felt a little guilty at being so extravagant, but I’ve resolved to wear them every non-rainy day from now until it begins snowing for the rest of my life.

For dinner, hubby and the kids took me to a Benihana-esque restaurant that the kids love and then back at home had friends Carolyn and Jenny over for some extremely yummy carrot cake (my favorite!)

Whew—I’m glad that’s done until next year!

Kelly

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Carolyn Carolyn Carolyn Carolyn Carolyn Carolyn*

*Kelly's friend Carolyn just saw our blog for the first time and liked everything except the fact that we somehow managed to overlook mentioning her somewhere in it!

This weekend I took a Volvo Driving Class to show off the safety features of my XC90. Lucky me! It involved swerving from one of lane of traffic to another and back, driving slalom style through pylons, and slamming on the brakes while making a ninety degree turn. These were done at about 40 miles per hour, which feels a lot faster when there are pylons flying overhead.

After our training we were ready to hit the track. A special course set up with S-curves, hairpin turns, and all sorts of obstacles to make your tires squeal and your heart pound.

I think I’m going to have to write a chase scene into one our books!

Kelly