TheMommyBlog

Photos are up!

We’re watching Terminator 2 in the room, and then we’re heading over to Extraordinary Desserts. 

We’re determined not to spend any more time in the car than is absolutely necessary today. We’re going to enjoy the weather, the beach, the food. Getting here took a leisurely eleven hours, with a two-hour stop for margaritas and nibbles at Phil’s Brother’s house in LA. I highly recommend it.

We did the whole Old Home Week tour of the coast yesterday, pointing out the many places I lived while in college and then while I took a break from higher learning. While fun, I have (and am actually relieved) to say that I am completely over the need to reminisce about the old days. I lived in some truly run down places, I gotta tell ya, though living so close to the beach that the waves lulled you to sleep each night was more than fair compensation.

Oceanside had gone through an unbelievable transformation. We ended the coastal tour at the pier there, hoping to walk the seventeen miles to the end of the pier to have a beer at the huge restaurant and gaze at the water. We arrived only to discover that they didn’t serve alcohol at all, and that there wasn’t anywhere within walking distance that did. Not to dismiss the value of a fine family burger place at the end of a lovely, historic pier with a fabulous view, but what a colossal waste of potentially lucrative, romantic, hopping dining space with any redeeming social value.

/snotty critic

Actually, no. I have one more bone to pick. We celebrated Phil’s birthday at the Island Prime restaurant on the edge of Harbor Island. The view was stunning, the atmosphere romantic and intimate, the menu full of things you could never decide between, and a wine selection that had me absorbed for twenty minutes.

Which made the following so unbelievable.

We ordered a fabulous and fabulously expensive bottle of Bordeaux with two center-cut filet mignons, with a side of truffled creamed corn. Absolutely divine. Only, the steaks weren’t center cut.

We might not have said anything, but we’d had a long and interesting discussion with our waiter about the cuts on offer. There was another selection that sounded great, but that wasn’t specifically advertised as center cut, because it specifically was not. Ah, we said, very clear, and thank you, we’ll have the center cuts.

So, naturally, when they arrived and were clearly the three-part tail ends of the tenderloin, we pointed it out. The steaks were delicious and we’d happily eat them, but the kitchen should know that they are turning out cuts of meat at premium prices that aren’t as advertised. The waiter and then the manager were completely and appropriately apologetic, and the manager stayed on to chat about cheffing and such, and when he left we were very happy and impressed with his willingness to listen and promise to alert the kitchen and management.

And then the bill came. Pop quiz: when someone drops damn near three hundred dollars on a spectacular dinner complete with cocktails, appetizer, Old World wine, surf and turf entrees, and any kind of side with truffles in it, and then proceeds to tell you that you’re sending out the wrong cuts of meat, what do you do?

You comp something. That is what you do to show appreciation and hope that the customer will come back. There were plenty of candidates on the bill—a martini, the side dish, the flipping sauce for the steaks at a modest $2.95—something.

But the bill came in all its detailed and lengthy splendor. We couldn’t believe it. I signed it and left a generous tip for our very friendly and knowledgeable waiter. After all, he’s not the chef. A few minutes later, the manager returned to ask if I was Melinda Roberts. I was.  Aha, we thought, he’s coming back to amend the bill! He proffered my credit card, which had slipped out of the bill folder between the computer and my table. Yes, thank you, I might need that again. How very helpful.

/snotty, but justified, critic

And now I would like to rave about our hotel. Run, don’t stumble, to The Pearl in Point Loma. They’ve completely redone an old sailor’s dive into a very hip, very funky little gem with a sense of humor. The rooms feature platform beds, fishbowl lighting fixtures with actual fish in them, 36-inch flat panel TV’s on the wall, free-standing showers, and very comfortable and happening furnishings. They also boast a Dive-In Movie, where they show movies on a huge screen on the second floor railing over the pool. There are huge beach balls floating all over the pool and poolside service. Omigod how I wished it were later in the year and the pool was heated. It is heated later in the year, but damn the luck for coming in February. We love this place and will be coming back.

The best part? If you stumble in after midnight, you can get any unsold room for $79. Beat that. Daddy-O.

Photos to follow, once we find the cable.

So Phil and I have been up in SF for MacWorld (for his professional development; I haven’t gone with him), and staying at our favorite B&B, The Edward II. That’s fun enough as it is. We can walk to fab restaurants, tons of shops, a movie theater, THE WATER. And The Palace of Fine Arts is like, three blocks away.

I should be at the Palace right now, enjoying the outdoors and writing there, but get this: we decided to stay an extra night on our dime and asked if any of the suites were available. Not only was the nicest one available, but the proprietor let us move there for the night with no rate increase! Now I don’t want to leave the Inn! Look at our room! And our bathroom! It’s bigger than my kitchen! I’d say that The Brambles Suite is easily two-thirds the size of my house, and cleaner, too. WITH room service and in-room massages if I so desire. Right now, what I desire is to have a long soak in that jacuzzi tub…

Another exciting day at… The Mommy Blog!

Okay campers, I’m off to San Francisco for three nights - like that would be apparent to anyone online.. but it does mean that I get to have dinner with mom and see her office, and maybe, just MAYBE, actually meet with my boss.

If you’re wondering what a gal like me does in ole San Fran, this will more than cover it!

Gotta run!

Just got here - it’s not even 3 pm and it’s totally dark out there. Nice weather.

Think I will take a nap. Already lost my %$&^^* glasses. Think they fell out of my coat pocket. SEE? Change ANYTHING in my routine and I’m toast.

So, I just got back from a looong walk down State street and am chagrined to say that I went SOUTH instead of NORTH. Why is that bad? Because I was raised here, and everyone knows without hesitating that the lake is east and therefore ALWAYS knows which way to turn. Not me. Oh, no. Granted, it’s dark out and I can’t see the lake, but I couldn’t miss the El train and that was a big enough bleeping clue.

Anyway, I knew I was back on track when I saw Marshall Field’s. I lurve Marshall Field’s. It’s where I go to get Frangos, and where I go to stare at the Tiffany ceiling. *sigh* Only it wasn’t Marshall Field’s anymore, it was Macy’s. Sweet baby Jesus in a corn crib with a rattle, what is this world coming to? I worked at that very store, the flagship, historically significant Marshall Field’s while in high school. Yes, that’s right. I was a Jr. Fashion Consultant. Shut up, I got to meet Brooke Shields. Which is what makes it so totally cool that both her blurb and mine were selected for the jacket of Writing Motherhood by Lisa Garrigues. Oh, we go way back.

Anyway, I cheered up and bought some new Benefit makeup, and then had a foundation concealer custom-mixed just for me. They used tiny spatulas and measuring spoons and for a minute I thought I was on the set of American Gangster. Fun. When I remember the name of the cosmetic, I’ll post it - their store in San Francisco opens next month, and they’ve only been open here two weeks. What a lame plug. Thanks, guys, for mixing and stirring and pressing my powder with such care! I can’t even remember the name of your company!

Update: It’s Colors Lab Custom Cosmetics!

Love,

Lameass

Last week on OpenRoad.tv, I was featured in a series called “Life Outside the Box” in which bloggers talk about what they do away from the computer (I know - it sounds so improbable).

After seeing the clip, I started thinking about The Phil Tour and what it means to us and those close to Phil.

Whenever friends or family visit my boyfriend, they go on the tour. After ten years of cheffing in San Francisco for wealthy socialites and families, Phil knows all the great spots to have fun and relax. We try to vary it a bit when we go, but there are a few places that we almost never miss. I decided it’s time to tell you about them and how to find them!

Disclaimer: The contents of The Phil Tour have never before been disclosed, and frankly, I think he should patent it, but since I talked about it once, the cat’s out of the bag.

But honestly? I think if we got enough people to sign up, we could make it an enterprise! These establishments don’t even know we do this, so we are definitely not receiving perks for it. Not so much as a donut. Just so you know.

This particular tour is what was featured in Doug’s delightful chat with Mindy Roberts, author of The Mommy Blog, and hears about her notion of a perfect day around the San Francisco Bay.

Edward II Inn & Suites
A LITTLE BIT OF ENGLAND IN THE HEART OF
SAN FRANCISCO
If you’re coming to the City by the Bay and are looking for a hotel that captures the diverse flavor of San Francisco, then you’ll relish the old world charm of the distinctive Edward II Inn and Suites.

Established in 1914, and voted one of the Best Romantic Hotels in San Francisco*, this exquisite three-story European-style bed and breakfast inn was a labor of love for the original designers. Our traditional English décor and a welcoming ambiance is a striking contrast to the large and impersonal downtown hotel.

Highway 5, here we come. Driving to Los Angeles today, Pacheco Pass willing.

We’re going to visit Phil’s brother and girlfriend to celebrate a birthday and early Thanksgiving, and then home again on Monday. Tuesday the kids have school, Wednesday we start cooking at Mom’s (yes, that’s an offer, can I bring the kids to help?) and then wham, Thanksgiving. It’s practically Easter already.

I’ll check in from the road (well, from a house) and see how the fates treat us on this fine Holiday weekend. Now would be the time to start a betting pool in the comments.

Back soon!

Oh, and guess where we were this weekend? Let’s just say that a dear friend wanted to give me a little while to see what it’s like to have someone take care of you completely.

It was heaven.

Phil and I missed our flight yesterday, skimming three minutes off the 45-minute baggage check-in requirement. And then we stood in line for forty minutes waiting to talk to the one person who could have gotten us on the plane anyway but of course was useless after said forty minutes.

We stayed at a hotel in Arlington Heights… which… I think is the first time I’ve spent any amount of time in Arlington Heights. It’s pretty nice, as far as I can tell from the breakfast buffet.

And now, we’re off to hop the shuttle to take us back to the airport, and then I’ll be home for dinner with my three little poopsies. Oh, and here’s a photo of my second-to-last dinner in Sweet Home Chicago. Fine dining at its best. Extra credit for those able to identify the shade of green on that relish.

Here we are, at the tail end of the BlogHer conference, and what a long, strange trip it’s been.

It’s been a little odd yet completely refreshing to have absolutely no work obligations at the conference, and to be free to come and go as I please, stopping only to shower key people with business cards, giving a wink and a smile that conveyed, “I DESPERATELY NEED WORK.” I think it should yield some interesting results.

One of the finest was a friendship struck up with Dr. Val Jones, Senior Medical Editor at Revolution Health. My stepfather has known her professionally for several years and thought that we’d get along very nicely. Phil says he just wanted to put us in a room together and see who got a word in edgewise. She is my long-lost twin. Only, more educated. And smarter. And employed. And a lot of fun to be with. She, Phil and I just came back from a lovely dinner at Coco Pazzi with her, and we are struggling to keep our eyes open after duck and Tartufo. Yummm-mmy.

It was a bit different from last night, which consisted of dinner with my brother and sister-in-law, my uncle, and the two of us at Gibson’s where they served Phil a mortifyingly huge thirty-ounce prime rib. Who eats thirty ounces of ANYTHING? We were aghast. But I’m sure everyone had the presence of mind to tuck that story away to be dragged out at family gatherings for the next dozen or so years.

After that, we met my best friend and another old friend from grammar school at the bar across the street, which was fine, but then we decided to push it with a visit to The Underground Wonder Bar, where Debbie knew the owner, who was also the musical entertainment. Sure, she sang a bit but there was a swerving interlude featuring Quincy Bones, “The Bones Man,” who proceeded to dance wildly while playing percussion on bones. Real bones. I think one of them still had his ex-wife’s wedding ring on it.

It actually would have been fun, and was, right up to the moment when Debbie claimed that I was having a birthday and I was forced to sit in a chair at the stage and have shots poured down my throat along with a dollop of whipped cream. Yes, thank you. You’re welcome. *shudder*

You could never pay me enough to post most of the pics from last night, but I do have a few, and then I need to get to sleep. We’re going to see Debbie and her little girl tomorrow, and hang out at Oak Street Beach.

See, the fun thing about being in marketing at a cool startup that helps you make plans with friends, I get to suggest all sorts of immediately useful things. For instance, we’ve been busily tagging places of interest for the BlogHer Conference at Navy Pier in Chicago, July 27-29!

You can now find all sorts of places in Chicago near Navy Pier, where the confernce will be held, and also near the hotels where people will be staying: restaurants, cafes, coffee houses, big places that can take a large group on short notice, family friendly places, all kinds of stuff. Best of all, we’ve given special attention to the knitting bloggers and listed shops and other places of interest to the knitting crowd. ; )

Please have a look - go to Renkoo.com and sign up, (all they ask for is your email address). From there you can find the whole BlogHer Conference venue list by going to the tag search page and entering the tag ”BlogHer2007.” From there it’s easy to make plans and invite others. Or, you could go directly to the BlogHer tag page and check out the maps and other information while you figure out where and when to meet all those great people you read but have never actually seen.

Can’t wait to see you there, and to get back to my hometown…

But after seventeen hours of driving across South Carolina and Georgia, and then flying the rest of the way home, I AM POOPED.

But I just wanted to prove that in a pinch, when there is a life-altering family event, my children clean up nicely.

Okay campers, listen up: it’s almost time for me to hop a plane to Georgia, because I’ve got Georgia on my mind. Georgia… sweet Georgia… Also? my baby brother is getting married. Seems an awful shame that I had to get married twice before any of my four brothers got married once. Um. *cough* Let’s move on, shall we?

I have just packed suits, ties, shirts, loafers, real, actual, dark dress socks, dresses, tights, pretty little pearl-white Mary Janes, and a fabulous Lauren halter dress and sexy red heels for me. I have no idea what’s in Phil’s humongous bag, and I ain’t askin’ neither. I’m sure it will get him through the next eight days just fine. I on the other hand, have filled a duffel for the kids, a small (the carry on size - for those at home who must think I can’t travel lightly) wheeled bag for me, a car seat, a shoe bag, computer, portable DVD player, puzzle books, coloring books, a Game Boy with no charger, a few movies, several books, and a partridge in a pear tree.

I hope to bring most if not all of that onto a plane with me at dawn. Mom’s coming to get us (in two cars) at five, and off we go. I had the kids sleep in their travel clothes, because, no. No. I’m not dressing three sleepy children at five a.m. No.

I am a limp noodle tonight - what with the last minute details, and packing and laundry and a job interview and negotiating carry ons with the kids. Yes! I interviewed at Yahoo! today, and I came out of there on a buzz a mile high. It’s a good feeling when someone knows you from the blogosphere and it’s a GOOD thing. Best moment? “Tell me about XYZ and other things you’ve done… uhhuh, go on… WAIT. That was YOU?” Heh. Awesome feeling. Here’s hoping.

In other (well, the same, really) news, I’ll be out of touch through next Friday night. I’m sure I’ll check in, but who knows how often since I DROPPED MY iBOOK and will be bringing my ThinkPad that doesn’t have all my pet programs and lovely files and all that. Maybe Phil will share his PowerBook with me. Maybe I should just enjoy time with my family.

See you when I get back!

P.S. Thanks a lot, eveyone, for peeing on my parade: when I posted the link to the age project here, suddenly my profile went from “people think on average you’re 13 years younger then you are” to “two years older than you are.” Only my readers. Only my readers.

This way, you can all help me recall what I’m supposed to be doing (and where I dumped my brain)!

To do today:

• Figure out how to make curvy corners using javascript and set it up for default inclusion in a Joomla! post template.
• Shower.
• Head to mall to purchase coats & ties & shirts & slacks & socks & shoes & dresses for children so they can look presentable at brother’s wedding in Atlanta this weekend. Remember, we live in CA and never have to dress up. Or look all that groomed. (Must find makeup.)
• Inventory luggage to see if adequate to transport gear for four days of fancy parties plus four days of beach for three children and one frazzled grownup. Borrow if necessary.
• Come up with system that separates children’s things without actually having to buy each one separate luggage. Once it’s all jumbled you may as well go home. There’s no sorting it out or getting any help at that point.
• Find coloring books, puzzles, etc. for six hour flights, plus six hour car rides between Atlanta and Myrtle Beach. Also, pepper spray.
• Find out from publisher if they can hurry up with the yearbook my friend and I designed and produced for pre-kindergarten class even though they work with presses, not wands.
• Fold all laundry and put away.
• Clean floors or learn how to do a decent soft-shoe.
• Empty fridge of anything that might breed in my absence.
• Stop mail.
• Wait, don’t stop mail. Friend must be able to pick up box of yearbooks when they arrive. Beg friend instead to hide mail.
• Don’t forget camera. Don’t forget camera. Don’t forget camera.
• Don’t forget portable DVD player and straps that harness it to the back of the front car seat.
• Buy booster seat for Daphne as she is too big for her Roundabout and too little to stay on the cute little perch Volvo intends for a booster. Get the pink one with flowers and she’ll never fight me on it.
• Eat something.
• Create budget templates for mother’s new job. Also, letter templates. Also, labels.
• Don’t forget cell phone. Don’t forget cell phone. Don’t forget cell phone.
• Set alarm clock for four a.m. Friday morning and pray for cooperation when Mom arrives at five to take us all to the airport. In two cars.
• Don’t forget meds. Don’t forget meds. Don’t forget meds.

Also! I was contacted by a terrific new site that I want to check out when I have a moment to myself. A lovely intern from Babble.com wrote and knew exactly how to interest me enough to look, and how to convince me to write about it. She is also a stone-cold fox, according to her pic on the About page!

Greetings! My name is Jessica and I’m an intern at Babble.com, the new online parenting magazine for the stylish, urban parent. Our staff is in love with your completely candid posts about life after divorce, your three kids (Daphne sounds adorable!), and your technophilia. I hope that the job interview at Yahoo works out! 

I’m writing because I thought you might be interested in posting about droolicious.com, the latest Babble blog which features fun product design and style guides for babies and toddlers. We just launched yesterday and would love for a hip, with it blogger (like yourself) to spread the word.

Happy to do it - I had a look and will definitely be back. I pored over the travel-fun books and was KICKING myself for not having something like that on hand for the trip!

As of last evening, the holiday weekend was off to a roaring start. Dylan went missing ten minutes after we got here, and we had mom, Phil and me fanning out across the town looking for him.

Someone had heard him asking where his backpack was, and then where the car was and then he was gone. We searched the house and then the streets. When I hit the fire department, they sent me to the police department at the edge of town. Two seconds after I said “missing child” three officers whipped out notebooks, took down descriptions, and jumped into their cruisers.

“Oh boy, a lost seven year old on Memorial Day Weekend; there are a LOT of seven year olds.”

A fourth took me to her car to start paperwork. She was thumbing through everything a couple of times, not finding the right form, when I finally said, “Look, I don’t have my cell phone on me, maybe we should check in and see if he’s still missing.” So she called mom and said she was with me and did they find Dylan yet? Yes, he was with Phil and I should come home. I burst into tears, handed the phone back, and walked half a mile back to the apartment.

He had been hiding under the futon in one of the bedrooms, mad that someone had unloaded his backpack and put it in the house before he could. He heard us calling for him all along.

We talked for a bit while I sobbed and he clung to my neck, and then we both fell asleep on the futon while Mom, my step dad, & Phil assembled the new grill out back. And then we went to Margaritaville where the adults had several large house specials apiece.