Ask Away Friday with A Cookie Before Dinner!

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Hooray, hooray, hooray for the all new #AskAwayFriday! Get to know the new hosts and  grab the new logo! Be sure to check out the new Facebook page “AskAwayFriday” for a great place to meet up and send out a #BuddyRequest if you need a partner to swap with! And always feel free to contact me here or anywhere if you want to swap with me.
What is #AskAwayFriday? Well… 
#AskAwayFriday was created by the amazing Penny from Real Housewife of Caroline County as a place for us to connect with other bloggers by asking them ten questions to really get to know them. The sky is the limit with the questions you ask!

Tamara from Tamara Like Camera,
Christy from Uplifting Families,
and

Amber from Bold Fit Mom



I'm back again for my second-ever Ask Away Friday but I'm not actually here! I'm up in Maine, camping and offline for the week, so leave me lots of comments to respond to when I get back. This week, I'm swapping questions with NJ of A Cookie Before Dinner. NJ is another friend from the Valley, who I met through our mutual friends in Northampton. NJ is the mom of two adorable kids, Malone and Lola. (Fans of NJ will remember that NJ and I were in a race to the finish to see who would deliver her baby first. Me and Micah won, but not for lack of trying on NJ's part!) Besides being a good friend, I admire NJ for her ballsy way of getting things done. NJ is NOT shy about asking for what she wants, and she almost always gets it. That's the way to do it, folks! She has some excellent questions for me this week and I had fun going through my photos for this post. In fact, it made me miss Flickr, which I've neglected in favor of Facebook and Instagram. *sigh* 

Here are my responses to her questions, and be sure to head over to A Cookie Before Dinner to read her answers to my questions! 


1. I know that Stella, Alice, and Micah are all named for family members. Tell us their name stories!

My father with Micah, during his bris, where he recieved his Hebrew names. 

In the Jewish faith, children are typically named after the deceased, so all of my children are named after my grandparents. Alice’s middle name is Ann, after my paternal grandmother and she also has her Hebrew name, Chana, meaning compassionate or gracious. Stella is named after my maternal grandmother, whom I never met. She passed away when my mother was 17. Her name was Shirley, so Stella has the S in her English name for that, and her Hebrew name is Shir-Li, which means “I have a song.”  Micah is named after both my grandfathers, both of whom passed away in the same summer, the same year I became pregnant with Micah. Their names were Michael and Solomon, and his Hebrew name is Meyer Shlomo. Meyer means “light” and Shlomo means “God’s Peace.” I love that my children’s names are imbued with everything that I hope for them now and in the future, while also honoring our past.

2. How did you and Henry meet? 



 

Some photos from those early days, before marriage and kids. 


We actually met on Flickr! You can read our story here, written by Henry but here are some of my favorite parts of the story:
“Anyway, things were going nice and smooth until I got stuck doing some emergency work whilst having brunch with her on this, our first meetup, which began at the SoHo Apple Store then bled over to some cool pub in the area. She hung on. Cool!Weird things began happening to me. The universe was talking to me. While walking on Lafayette Street heading to the Triple Five Soul store, we had walked right past an ex-girlfriend!Wow!”


“We have the most smashing dinner and find our way to a friend’s bar in the East Village for some after dinner cocktails. That’s it! I couldn’t contain myself. We were getting closer. No doubt. I reached over an gingerly placed that kiss on her. I had been waiting to do that for oh so long. Finally! “


3. I cried as I read your post about Alice and kindergarten. I loved seeing her growth through the year in your story. Has there been a common theme of growth this year for her? 

This year has been all about learning to deal with conflicts with friends. Alice is a NICE girl and goes out of her way to include other kids in her play, and is sometimes too nice to stand up for herself until she gets frustrated and gets upset, so her teacher worked with her this year on helping her resolve conflicts with friends who were making a lot of demands and conditions on her attention. I'm curious to see what'll happen in the Fall after a summer apart from her friends.


4. I know your family loves to camp! We're considering take a short trek this summer ourselves. Do you have any advice for camping with an infant?

Camping at DAR in Goshen, MA. Stella is five months old and Alice is 2. 


It is so fun to camp with the whole family. It is not relaxing, per se, but being out in the woods does demand a little looseness and flexibility, and some shedding of routine. That said, as long as you are car camping, you might as well bring along some comforts of home! My number one advice for camping with infant or a pre-walker is bring a pack and play and/or an exersaucer. It’s nice to be able to put the baby down without worrying about the baby eating bugs and crawling near the fire pit. Bring the baby’s crib companions. A little familiarity goes a long way in helping with bedtime in a strange place with strange noises. Don’t stress over getting the baby to bed at her usual time. Sitting around the campfire as the sun goes down, with the baby on your lap listening to the lulls of conversation can be pretty relaxing! Take advantage of the campground’s offerings--if there is a creek to play in, go play in it. If there is a hiking trail suitable for kids, go hike it. Keep the kids active and busy, and they’ll be happy and tired at the end of the day. Most of all, just have fun.


5. In your post about your writing process, you talked about becoming braver in your writing. Since then, you've written about a hot button issue and talked about being fat. Has anything changed now that you're putting "more" of yourself out there for the world to see? 

I’m feeling a little more fearless because I’ve gotten such positive feedback. I’m looking forward to exploring some of these issues a little more deeply and branching out into other areas, like maybe my marriage but we’ll see! But it's really a case of just jumping in feet first and getting over some fear.


6. Give us an update on how your 2014 word of the year, FOCUS, is going. 

To be quite honest, I had to go back and re-read that blog post! Oops. Anyway, I do think I have gotten better at trying to focus on one task at a time, and to be less tied to devices and social media. When this post is published, I’ll be in the middle of a week-long camping trip in Maine. I plan to leave my iPad and computer at home, and to keep my phone turned off and in the car for the duration of the trip, with the exception of a day trip to Portland. I’m a little nervous and excited about that aspect of my trip, and I’m sure I’ll have lots of insights to share when I get back! I’m also focusing on reading more and being online less. This also means that I am spending more time on housework because it is hard for me to sit and read when I know there is a pile of laundry to be folded or dinner to be prepped!

7. You and I both belong to the online book club, From Left To Write. What has been your favorite book you've read for it? Why do you love it so much? 


                   


This is not an easy question! Happier at Home was a book I really enjoyed. I devoured it in days because I love her message of creating spaces that will make being at home enjoyable. We live in a tiny house, and with three kids, I’m often motivated to get out of the house but that comes at a price because it means our living spaces are neglected. In the winter, I basically hibernate, so it’s even more important then to make sure home is a place where I’m happy to be, even when it feels like we’re bursting at the seams and we’re in the throes of cabin fever.

8. In November, I gave you the Sunshine Award and asked you to describe your ideal day. You said that your ideal day was one where you could accomplish everything on your mental to-do list. Has this changed? If so, what does your ideal day look like now? 

Ha. This is another one that I had to go back and look for! I think accomplishing stuff on my mental to-do list still makes an ideal day for me, but my daily to-do list has gotten much shorter, out of necessity. I’m happy if I can get a load of laundry done, dishes washed and dinner on the table. I’ve also made it a point to accomplish one big project a week, like packing up outgrown clothes or scrubbing the kitchen floor, so I feel pretty good when I can get that done.

9. What is one thing Stella and Alice fight about? 

One thing? Ha ha. Oof. They fight about the stupidest, smallest stuff. It seems that way, anyway, on the surface but when I look deeper, I know that they are really fighting a kind of turf war, looking for a way to control outcomes. It doesn’t make it any less annoying but it does change the way I deal with their conflicts and helps me to decide whether I need to let them work it out or if I need to intervene. I usually intervene if I feel like there is not a fair fight going on or if one girl is being disrespectful of the other’s space.

10. What does the summer look like for your crew? 

Tamara asked me last week what our summer travel plans are but I can answer this question a little differently. Summer looks wide-open, for the most part. Outside of our travel plans, we have no set plans. The general routine is to hang out at home in the mornings, or go to the library, then go swimming in the afternoons before dinner time. Sometimes, we go swimming closer to ddinner time and just have a late dinner. I’d like to take a few day trips, and fulfill Stella’s wish to go on a “car-boat,” (ferry) so our options are the Staten Island ferry, the Governor’s Island ferry or the Newburgh-Beacon ferry, two of which don’t actually involve putting a car on the ferry but I don’t think she’ll care! I also have a summer bucket list that includes going to the Red Rooster Drive-In in Brewster, NY and taking the kids to Lake Minnewaska in New Paltz, as well as to Storm King in Newburgh, NY but I won't stress if that stuff doesn't happen. I'm perfectly content to spend the summer at the library and the lake!



Okay, you guys. Wish me luck on our week-long camping trip...we've never gone for more than a weekend! You can look forward to a post about family car camping, for sure. And if you haven't checked it out, read the latest installment in my interview series A Blessing and A Curse, in which I interview mothers with disabilities or medical conditions.

Ask Away Friday with Tamara Like Camera!

Thursday, June 19, 2014



Hooray, hooray, hooray for the all new #AskAwayFriday! Get to know the new hosts and  grab the new logo! Be sure to check out the new Facebook page “AskAwayFriday” for a great place to meet up and send out a #BuddyRequest if you need a partner to swap with! And always feel free to contact me here or anywhere if you want to swap with me.
What is #AskAwayFriday? Well… 
#AskAwayFriday was created by the amazing Penny from Real Housewife of Caroline County as a place for us to connect with other bloggers by asking them ten questions to really get to know them. The sky is the limit with the questions you ask!

Tamara from Tamara Like Camera,
Christy from Uplifting Families,
and
Amber from Bold Fit Mom



Folks, I am thrilled to be doing Ask Away Friday. This is my first go at it, after months of reading other #AAF posts and really digging the questions and answers. I decided it's finally time to jump on the bandwagon and today, I am paired with one of my all-time favorite bloggers who also happens to be one of my all-time favorite people that I know offline. I first met Tamara through our mutual friend NJ. As a new transplant to Western Mass, I felt that this Jersey girl spoke my downstate language. Her daughter Scarlet made quite the impression on Alice back then. We had a meet-up at the awesome Eric Carle Children's Book Museum in Amherst, and though it was three years ago (or more?!), Alice still talks about "that girl Scarlet that we met at the museum who has the curly hair." In any case, I am pretty sure, in the #AAF circle and on the Internet at large, Tamara needs no introduction! But in case you've been living under a virtual rock, check out her blog, which I read religiously because she is an amazing storyteller, both with her words and her photographs.



You can read Tamara's answers to my questions here and below are my answers to her questions! Happy reading! 


1. What do you miss most about Western Mass? Oh, jeez. I don’t know where to begin. The thing I miss most is how quickly everyone jumps in to help a mama out, and how laid back the social life is. I like that it isn’t always about going out to have fun but just staying in and hanging out. I also really miss driving all the back roads and taking the long way home but luckily, we have settled into a town where I can do the same thing! I made some great friendships in the valley, so thank goodness for Facebook, though it will never substitute for the real thing.


2. I know you have more success with me at getting your kids to eat balanced meals. What's a meal or dish recipe that your whole family will eat?  Oy! I have to say, I’m having much less success lately. It really ebbs and flows but I find that any meal involving fish, rice and beans or chicken will be met with universal approval from all three kids. I just checked my blog to see if I have a recipe for rice and beans but I don’t! Here’s two that I’ve been using lately, both made in a pressure cooker, which is the greatest invention ever: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/black-beans-in-a-pressure-cooker-recipe.html (I omit the ham hock)  and http://weelicious.com/2013/01/24/pressure-cooker-pinto-beans/


3. What's something you have always wanted to do that you have yet to accomplish? Mmh… I feel like I have a list in my head and of course, I’m having the darndest time pulling it up! Well, I was just talking to my  mom last week about how I want to go to New Zealand. One of my favorite writers is Janet Frame and she was from New Zealand. Also, it just sounds like an amazing place!


4. I remember reading and loving your "how we met" story with Henry. What was the  first date you went on? What do you remember noticing about him that made you know you wanted to marry him..or at least have a relationship? Our first official date was at Tribeca Grill, an upscale restaurant owned by Robert DeNiro. I was really excited to go there and… I dragged my little sister along! She was in town visiting me, and I didn’t want to go alone. We were celebrating Henry’s birthday, so I made a layer cake for him and brought it to the restaurant. The frosting was a mess by the time I got out of the cab. The kitchen staff was incredibly gracious and fixed the frosting! They stored it in the fridge until it was time for us to surprise Henry with it. He was really touched by the gesture and might’ve shed a tear or two because no one had ever made him a homemade cake before, which seemed incredibly sad to me! After dinner, we went to a bar where his friend was bartending (and yes, my underage sister came along… don’t tell). We had our first kiss at the bar, after a few drinks. I think I just felt that he was really sweet and so different from any other guy I had dated, especially my ex-boyfriend, with whom I had recently broken up. Also, I met Henry right around the same time I met this other guy, and felt drawn to Henry over the other guy, who was nice but not right.


5. Got this one from Diz Mommy - When people meet you for the first time, what are they surprised to learn? You know what? I have no idea! I had to crowd-source this question for an answer! My friend Bain said it was that fact that my family gets along and functions better than most "traditional" families, even though we have an unconventional family dynamic. In fact, long before the TV show ever came on the air, my friend Suzanne used to say that I had the ultra-modern family, with a gay mom, two stepmoms, half-siblings and step-siblings. My friend Sandi says that she is still amazed how well I speak for having been born deaf. She's right-- it's a frequent observation from new people in my life! She also said she would've guessed that I was Latina. To those Puerto Rican girls in a bar bathroom who told me that there was no way I could be Puerto Rican, I say: Take That! But seriously, it's my olive skin tone and nutso curly hair that throws people off, I think, plus the fact that I have my Puerto Rican husband's last name.


6. I ask this a lot but I really like it for you: What profession would you most like to try for a day? And what profession would you most hate to try? I would really like to be a librarian for a day, or forever. I think I would be good at it but I can’t go back to school right now, or ever, probably. *sadface* I definitely would not want to try a job that involves touching people or being around bodily fluids. Blech.


7. Do you have any plans to travel this spring (what's left of it) and summer? Well, we already took a camping trip over Memorial Day weekend with my sister, her family and her friends, and my friends. It was a lot of fun. Next up is a week-long camping trip in Maine. We’ve never gone camping for more than a weekend with the kids and I really don’t know how it will go. We’re staying at a family campground so there will be plenty for us to do, and some more modern conveniences that don’t come with regular car camping. After that, we are headed to the Cape for two weeks at the end of July and beginning of August. I am really excited about this. Henry is joining us for the second week so I will have to drive there alone, with the kids. The long drive makes me a little nervous but I think I can do it. I also have plans to take a solo trip with the girls to Lake Ontario, to visit a friend who has a lake cottage up there, and of course, I would really like to make it up to the Valley! Someone up there needs to have a party and invite me so that I have an excuse to go...


8. What's the last great book you read and what did you love about it? I need a recommendation from a fellow reader/writer! Oh, the pressure!!! It’s actually been awhile since I read a super great book but here are three that I really loved in the past year:


9. Can I ask you your own question..because I love it. What cancelled TV show would you bring back from your childhood? Tough one!! But I’m going to nerd out here and say that I would love for Ghostwriter and Square One to come back for my own kids to watch. Do you remember those shows? I thought they were awesome and would watch them every day after school!






10. Which fairy tale character do you (or did you as a child) most associate with? I have to confess, I was not and still am not into fairy tales! My knowledge is woefully inadequate in this area, despite having two girls that are a little princess crazy. Can I pick a contemporary fairy tale character? I really love the Paper Bag princess and I think I am more like her than any other character! I have to thank my friend Sue for introducing me to this character when she gave my girls a copy of this book.



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The Sunshine Award {Sort Of}

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

This post is long overdue (sorry, NJ!) but better late than never, right? I'm also going to profess lameness in that I can't think of 11 bloggers to nominate. So, I'm going to half-ass this the best I can! 

I don't know why this is called The Sunshine Award but I like to think it's because the nominating bloggers bring a little sunshine to our corners of the internet. So, my task is to share 11 random facts about myself (let's see if I can come up with something new!), then answer 11 questions posed by my nominating blogger, NJ at A Cookie Before Dinner. Like NJ, I'll also throw in some nice pictures for you to look at. 

11 Random Facts About Myself

Stella, juicing apples for cider. 
  1. I ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches almost every day when I was in middle and high school, for lunch. Before that, it was jelly and cream cheese sandwiches. 
  2. I'm terrible at keeping house and have to work hard to not let my house turn into a total pig sty. 
  3. I'm terrible at multitasking. I can do it but I never do anything well when I try. 
  4. I took independent study English in tenth grade because I didn't want to be in a regular English class. 
  5. The first semester of tenth grade, I studied Zora Neale Hurston and fell in love with Harlem Renaissance literature. 
  6. The second semester of tenth grade, I studied Beat Generation literature. 
  7. I have an entire living room wall (okay, it's a small wall) of Beat Generation-related images, including a giant movie poster for What Happened to Kerouac?, given to me by my stepmother, Wendy, who knows me too well. 
  8. Wendy also gave me a signed, hardcover, first edition of a collection of Ginsberg poems. 
  9. My 11th grade Humanities project was a study of the American Dream theme in... beat generation literature. (Are you sensing a pattern here? An obsession, maybe?) 
  10. I was on the local news when Ginsberg died. I read a poem I wrote about him, at a memorial event held at a local club in Albany. I have no idea where my copy of the poem is now. Wish I did, though!
  11. I didn't mean to turn this into a Beat-themed list, so here's something different: this one time, What Not To Wear called me after my sister and I submitted each other's names to be on the show. But I wasn't home when they called and my sister told them I couldn't do it. Yes, I still hold a slight grudge. It's my only grudge, really. What does that say about my priorities? 
Micah, accidentally waving to Alice in the pool during her swim lesson. 


NJ's 11 Questions

  1. If you could only eat one type of ethnic food for the rest of your life what would it be and why? Indian food! It's warming, filling and fills all my carby needs while also being pretty healthy. Also, it's usually cheap and easy to make at home. 
  2. Who is the last person you chatted with on the phone? I don't talk on the phone but I do text a lot, and the last person I texted with was my friend Anna-Bain. 
  3. What was your favorite Halloween costume as a kid? Bonus points here for a picture ! I had an astronaut costume that I wore all the time but I don't know if I actually wore it on Halloween... in any case, I don't remember any of my costumes and to this day, I'm still not a costume person! 
  4. If you’re married, where did you honeymoon? If you’re not married, where do you dream of going? We took our honeymoon in Italy. We spent two weeks there, mostly in Todi at our friend's villa, bookended by a couple of days in Rome. We are making slow plans to go back with our kids, my mom, and my sister's family. 
  5. What is your favorite pair of shoes and why? My leather boots. I always feel put together when I wear them, even though they are completely worn out. 
  6. Coffee or tea? Both, actually. I need at least a cup of coffee a day but my favorite hot drink is hot water with lemon, honey and ginger, which I drink throughout the day when it's cold out. 
  7. What movie could you watch over and over? The Thing Called Love, with Samantha Mathis and River Phoenix. Please don't laugh at me. Runners-Up: Dazed and Confused and Labryinth
  8. What does your ideal day look like? A day where I accomplish everything on my mental To-Do list. 
  9. Do you speak a foreign language? If not, which would you be most interested in learning? Nope. I know a little Spanish but not enough to be conversant. I wish I were more fluent!
  10. What is the latest “big” life goal you’ve accomplished? Ugh. I'm skipping this one. I don't have any big life goals, really. 
  11. What is your favorite holiday? Sounds corny but any holiday that involves sitting around a table with my family. 
Alice and her cousin are best buds. 






Three Weeks (or Two Weeks and 6 Days).

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

First, here is the trailer for the Ina May Gaskin documentary, Birth Story:




{You can buy a digital download for $12.99 but I'm holding off on that until they provide English subtitles for the hearing-impaired (right now, they only offer Spanish subtitles.)}

With three weeks to go, I'm in full-on nesting mode. My strategy has been to tackle one project first thing in the morning. So far, I have:

  • cleaned up and reorganized the pantry (which also doubles  triples as the laundry room/utility closet), 
  • degreased and scrubbed the vent filters for the stovetop (majorly gross and clearly something I should more often), 
  • attempted to deep-clean the stovetop and backsplash, with moderate success, 
  • cleaned out, lined and reorganized the cutlery drawer, 
  • cleaned and organized the top shelf of our living room closet, so that I could make room for things that were living on top of our Expedit shelving unit, which in turn created room for other things that needed a new home. 
I've also become a stickler for keeping the kitchen clean at all times, and staying on top of the laundry because, boy, it would really suck to go into labor at any minute, then come home to a messy house. 

Next up, 
  • cleaning the fridge (my least favorite task)
  • stripping and cleaning the vinyl floors in the kitchen (it's a rental... why does anyone put down vinyl? I don't know. Yuck.)
  • weeding through the girls' overgrown collection of books
  • attempting to create some sort of order to their room
  • making meals and snacks for the freezer (pinning ideas, naturally!) 
Or maybe next is a baby. Who the hell knows...? 





11 Things About You Don't Know About Me (or Maybe You Do)

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Another part of accepting the Liebster Award is sharing 11 random things about myself. I think I'm a pretty open book so some of these things might not surprise you! But I'll try...


  1. I once met Lawrence Ferlinghetti at The Poetry Project on St. Mark's Place. Some kid took a picture of me with the poet but never gave me a copy of the photo. (This was in the days before everyone had a digital camera.) 
  2. When I attempted to go skiing on the German/Czech border, I got all the way to the top after a seemingly endless lift ride, took one look at the mountain and decided to hightail it out of there. In seeking an escape route, I ended up on the wrong side of the mountain and had to hitch a ride back to the ski resort. Luckily, I was picked up by a very handsome and polite Czech fellow who was fluent in English with a nice car and a roof rack. 
  3. In Ecuador, I went for a bike ride down a bumpy hill. The brakes failed, I flew over the handlebars and landed on my head. (No, I wasn't wearing a helmet because I'm stupid.) I ended up with a black eye, bloody knees and elbows and a minor concussion. To this day, my memory is faulty. 
  4. When Allen Ginsberg died, I wrote a poem and read it at a memorial event in Albany which was covered by the local news, so I made a small appearance that night. 
  5. Speaking of TV appearances, I was on 20/20 when I was a kid. I'm pretty sure my mom still has the VHS somewhere. It's time to convert that tape to DVD! 
  6. The summer I turned 16, I went to Israel for 5 weeks and lived on a kibbutz where I worked in a nectarine processing plant, sorting nectarines (or playing basketball with the bad ones...). A Russian dude named Roman proposed marriage. He was very handsome but I had to decline. 
  7. I have read so many books that if you asked me what my favorite book is, I would sheepishly admit that I don't know or can't remember. 
  8. Surprisingly, I am asked quite often how Henry and I met. I thought everyone knew the story by now! 
  9. I've been tubing on The Amazon. 
  10. Speaking of The Amazon, I had to be rescued by another knight in shining armor when I arrived at the airport in Quito for my flight home, and almost missed my flight because I didn't have money for the exit tax (which I'd never heard of!). A nice boy from Georgia lent me the money, and an awesome TSA agent rushed me through security so I could make my flight. Of course, I sent that boy a check as soon as I got home! 
  11. It took me way too long to come up with this list. Seriously. I thought of a better one: I used to work in a broasted chicken joint when I was in high school. My boss was a supercreep that paid me under the table because his bookkeeping wasn't "set up yet" and got a little too close when training me on the ice cream dispenser. 

Accepting the Liebster!

Saturday, April 27, 2013



When Caitlin first blogged about being nominated for a Liebster and started rolling out her own nomination-- I'm not going to lie-- I was secretly hoping I'd get a nomination. And I did! My first blogger award ever, and from an awesome person, to boot. To accept the award, I need to answer 11 questions that Caitlin came up with, plus nominate 11 bloggers myself and come up with my own questions. 
So, taking a cue from Caitlin, I'll start off by answering her questions, then roll out my nominations over the next few weeks. (What? I'm busy! Or something...) 
1. Where on earth do you feel the most yourself? Probably in my own house. I suffer from a neurotic fear of judgment from others. 
2. What is your favorite quality in a friend? Hilarity. Seriously, the people I'm good friends with are the people that make me laugh and make me feel good about myself. 
3. Best sandwich you ever ate. This is a hard one because I love sandwiches! Last night, I had a caramelized onion and mushroom grilled cheese from a food truck at my girls' preschool fundraiser. It was pretty damn good.  Probably my all-time favorite sandwich is tied between this Green Grilled Cheese from Full Belly Sisters and this dessert concoction that a friend used to make for a group of us after a night of debauchery-- it involved peanut butter, chocolate and a lot of butter. 
4. Window or aisle? Window. Here's a little known fact about me. I'm a champion pee holder and I almost never need to pee when I'm flying. So I sit by the window so I don't have to deal with people climbing over me. 
5. Favorite mistake. Oh, man. I've made a lot of these... where to begin? My favorite  mistakes probably happen in the kitchen, when I end up with something delicious despite doing it all wrong!
6. What is your dream date night? If money were no object, a dream date would involve heading down to the city, starting with dinner at a new restaurant, then gallivanting around the city to various art and drink venues, before getting to sleep in the next  morning at a fancy hotel, and brunch, of course. 
7. What did you want to be when you grew up? I wanted to be an astronaut until I was 5 and saw the shuttle explode on TV. 
8. What do you want to be when you grow up? Involved in the education field, in some way. I was already a teacher, and while I loved working with my kids, I hated the administrative aspects of it. I would love to be working for an education policy organization or think tank, doing research and writing policy papers. 
9. Best advice ever given to you. Look at the donut, not the hole. (Thanks, Dad!!) 
10. Worst advice ever given to you. I can't answer this because I block out the bad advice I've been given, especially if the results were disastrous. LOL. 
11. Best advice you can give. Be a good person and have faith. Everything turns out okay in the end. 

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