The Birthday Party That Wasn't Supposed To Be

Lucas has had a birthday party every year of his life. I'm big on birthdays, and see it also as a bit of an anniversary that we survived another year of parenthood. But I'll be honest, I'm a little burnt out on them. Between the hand made brain lollipops and matching brain cake for the 6 YO science party and the 3 YO Alice in Wonderland tea party extravaganza, my party-sanity has been spent. Drained. Done. So I made a proclamation - 4 and 8 were NON-BIRTHDAY PARTY YEARS. 

It worked with Zoe. I just took her and her BFF to the American Girl store in LA for lunch. She got a doll and was thrilled. Easy peasy. But that is not the case with the boy. He's more like me than he knows... and he wanted to have a party. I gave him choices like Disneyland, a weekend in Palm Springs, a Laker game or even his own computer. Nope. He wanted a party. 

I started to look around. What is a cool party for 8 year old boys? We are at the drop off stage, which freaked me out last year at the Rugby park party when parents left their kids with us and some tacking dummies for 3 hours mid-day. So it has to be easy, secure, be able to have about 20 kids and not cost an arm and a leg. That leaves us with.... nothing. 

So I talked the kid into a smaller, "family" party at home. Our close family friends and their kids. We'll have dinner and the kids can play video games. Lucas wasn't really sold, but solemnly agreed. Yea. I was WORKED OVER by an (almost) 8 year old. He knows me. He's knows my style and how I roll. More importantly, he KNOWS that Mom doesn't do small, nothing parties. And he is so correct. 

This small party is now being dubbed "Club A.V.A.N.T."

We are transforming the dining room into a dance club complete with a DJ (friends of ours with a set up), strobe light and disco ball. Lucas has decided that he wants his friends to do a "rap off" and he even has an outfit change slated. The other day he asked if we could also get a taco truck and a chocolate fountain.

I told him that he's watching entirely too much Disney XD. 

Check back for post-mortem madness and pictures next week. 

Little Pink Blazer of Love

I have a few "issues" of late. 

Who am I kidding, I have many issues, but there are two I'm going to specifically talk about here. My addiction to H&M and little jackets. These two things go hand in hand. Without one, I may not have the other, but they definately work together to overcome me. 

I've been doing The Dailey Method workout now for a few months. I can't say enough wonderful things about the workout and the owners of the studio in the Carlsbad Forum shops. But its fabulous location does have its downfall - it's right upstairs from one of the most wonderful H&M's in the United States. 

Two stories of cheap Scandinavian clothes goodness. Womens! Mens! Kids! Even an escalator up to a second floor of shopping heaven. There is nothing more magical than wandering around an empty store right after they open because you managed to get your booty to the mall for an 8:45 workout. Knowing that after 60 minutes of squeezing my ass tighter than I thought possible and hoisting my leg up in ways that are really unnatural, but does amazing things for the side of your booty, that my perfect, clean and uncrowded H&M is waiting for me is inspiration enough. 

Now onto jackets. I love me some little blazers. And thanks to H&M I now have seemed to amass a bit of a collection of adorable little blazers. Black. Gray. Beige. And now? HOT PINK.

It called to me from across the store. One look and I had to have it. But could I pull it off? And HOW would I pull it off? If you abide to the Rachel Zoe style, you always style your outfit around one, fabulous jacket/vest/scarf. The first time I dared to don the pink was out to dinner on a GNO. For this adventure I paired it with a slouchy black T, black skinny jeans and black wedges.

For the Bel Bambini We Heart Mom Bloggers event a few days later, I recycled the outfit but since I was with Zoe, opted for easy to walk in boots. While I had recieved positive feedback on the jacket, I was still a little unsure... that's why I was actually pretty pleased with how well the color photographed in this picture. 

It also pairs well with the Zebra stripes of the Baby Mat we won, huh? 

The next hurdle was work. Could I wear it in a professional casual environment? And how? For this, I one to my beloved Pinterest. 

Apparently I needed a new stripped t-shirt. And for summer a white dress (like this one from Nordstrom?). While I wore black under before, white is obviously the color of choice under the hot pink. But since we had a week of 70-80 degree temps last week, I opted to pair the striped shirt look with white pants and brown wedges. 

I must say that I'm loving the pink blazer. While you can't really tell in this photo, I also (inadvertantly) painted my toes the same color as the jacket. I have such a sweet spot for pink. 

The moral of this story is really simple. Take a fashion risk this spring. Get something that calls to you even if you think it *may* be ridiculous. And WORK IT, Mama. 

That’s Some Scary Sh*t. Bizarre Children’s Illness to Keep In Mind!

A few weekends ago my little 7-year old niece, Avery, seemed to be coming down with something. While she had no "normal" symptoms of illness, she was exhausted and emotional and just not acting like herself. Just like almost everyone I’ve talked to this past month, a serious case of the icks (colds/flus etc) had torn through their house, leaving my sister-in-law, Heather, to think that the family was just being hit again. But things were a little different… my niece is quiet, easy going. Only now she was hysterical, crying, sobbing and seeming anxiety-ridden and a bit OCD-ish.

This odd for her behavior continued on through the weekend, and into the start of the next week. With no actual physical symptoms, and just worried they had overdone it schedule-wise lately, Heather sent her to school Monday.  Halfway through the day, knowing that her behavior was so unlike her, Avery's teacher sent her to the nurse and guidance counselor to see if either of them had any ideas. Neither did, but both were very concerned.

What would cause the general mood and disposition of a happy child to change drastically overnight?

Of course paranoid thoughts filled the heads of those who know and love her. And knowing something just wasn’t right, Heather took Avery to the doctor the following day. While the pediatrician’s first thought was exhaustion, after a few questions about other ailments in the family and finding out that my brother-in-law had been diagnosed with strep throat the week before, he ran a strep test …. That came back positive.

PANDAS

No - Not the cuddly, cute, black and white variety, PANDAS is an acronym for Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal infections. While this is rare, this can happen to kids when their body's defenses are trying to attack the Streptococcal bacteria causing the sore throat, there is some degree of mistaken identity and it also attacks some parts of the brain. This autoimmune attack is thought to occur on closely related parts of the brain, causing a range of behavioral and emotional problems.

“Typically, a child with undiagnosed PANDAS may be taken to the Psychologist and/or Pediatrician for treatment of an onset or exacerbation of ADHD symptoms, oppositional behaviors or OCD. Stimulant or anti-depressant medication may be prescribed and/or a behavioral intervention or counseling initiated. As the infection passes and the strep antibodies reduce, the symptoms gradually subside and parents and clinicians believe that the intervention was successful. However then there is another strep infection, the symptoms return and the process is repeated. The problem is that the brain is being continuously damaged by the repeated attacks by streptococcus antibodies; and after each attack the recovery of damaged brain tissues may not be as complete as we would hope. Eventually the child may develop a chronic psychiatric disorder.”

Maybe you have heard of this? A few years back, mother Beth Maroney wrote the book Saving Sammy, where she talks about what she and her son went through when he suddenly "caught OCD." This child went through years of therapy and medications and wouldn't leave his room for years before being tested for strep. He's now 20 and is in college. 

Or you may have seen articles of the strange "mass psychogenic illness" affecting 18 teenagers in Le Roy, New York? Just last week Dr. Rosario Trifiletti diagnoses the kids with PANDAS stating that:

"eight girls tested show evidence of infection with at least one of these pathogens. Both of these agents have been associated with a PANDAS-like illness with the sudden onset of motor and vocal tics. Thus, a PANDAS-like illness is my working diagnosis, rather than a mass conversion disorder."

While the medical community is still in disagreement over whether or not the Le Roy children actually have PANDAS or if the onset of the symptoms are related to other stresses, it is something to keep in mind. While I hate to be Jenny McCarthy-esque and propogate internet health rumors that may or may not be true, I also know that there are many health issues (like Kawasaki Disease) that are newly discovered and just don't have the years of research defending them yet. 

Thankfully, my niece’s pediatrician caught this, and after just 24-hours on antibiotics, she was back to her sweet self. But with ADHD, Autism and many behavior issues on the rise, it makes you wonder how much a simple round of antibiotics may have made a difference. 

All you need is love... and champagne

Here's the thing - we almost NEVER go out on Valentine's Day. Our very first Valentine's Day together, Jason made me a beautiful dinner BEFORE we went out to party with friends. We've always thought of it as "amateur night" for restaurant goers. I remember one boyfriendless Vday in college, when a group of girlfriends and I went someplace "fancy" like Red Lobster to drown our relationshipless sorrows in all you can eat crab legs dipped in butter, and I remember seeing old married couples there, dressed up and waiting for 45 minutes for a table. AT RED LOBSTER. On Valentine's Day. 

Pretty much, Valentine's Dinner out is like amateur night. It's like going to an Irish bar on March 17th - it's for people who desperately need an excuse to go out to dinner. We love eating out. We don't need a special occasion to enjoy a good meal out - so why bother to do it on the ONE night that everyone else feels the need to and fight the crowds?

ESPECIALLY when my husband is SUCH a good cook? And we all know there 'aint nothing sexier than a man who can cook...

Last week the nice people over at BevMo sent me an email reminding me of one of my favorite champagnes, Schramsberg. 

Schramsberg Blanc de Blanc sparkling wine is one of the best sparkling wines on the market. It has rich and honeyed flavors of orange, sweet limes, Meyer lemons, vanilla and toasty bread. It is perfect served with fresh oysters and caviar, or aged Gouda and other hard cheeses.

Know what else it pairs nice with? Just a glass. :)

But if you are at a loss of what to prepare tomorrow night, never fear - they also offered the perfect suggestion. Scallops!

So just because you don't have a babysitter doesn't mean the night can't be special. Get some cheese, a (few) bottles of wine and/or champagne and make it a special night at home. 

Seared Sea Scallops with Braised Leeks, and Caviar Sabayon

Submitted by Chef Cyril Frechier Rover's, Seattle, WA

• 4 leeks trimmed, white part only
• 4 large diver Sea Scallops
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup Schramsberg Blanc de Blancs or Brut Napa Valley
• 1/2 oz. caviar
• 8 oz. butter
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. Walnut oil
• Sea salt
• White pepper

1. Braised Leeks - Trim and clean leeks. Lay in a shallow casserole, cover with water up to 2/3. Add 1/4-cup butter and one teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, partially covered. Cook over moderate heat until whites are soft, about 30 minutes. Keep warm in the cooking water.

2. Sabayon - Beat the egg yolks and place in a small saucepan. Over low heat, add the Blanc de Blancs a small amount at a time, whisking constantly until thickened. Do not bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add 4 ounces softened butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Scallops - In a sauté pan on high heat add olive oil. When hot, sear scallops until golden brown on the outside and still moist in the center, about one minute per side. Lightly season with sea salt.

4. To assemble - Remove leeks from cooking liquid and slice lengthwise. Toss in a small bowl with walnut oil. Season with sea salt and pepper. Divide onto four plates. Place sea scallop on top of leeks. Gently mix caviar into sabayon and spoon over scallops. Serve immediately.

HipMamaB San Diego: Free Screening of This Means War - TONIGHT

For all my San Diego Lovelies...

Nicole and I are "hosting" a free screening of the new Reese Witherspoon movie This Means War, TONIGHT at 7:30 at the AMC in La Jolla. 

Book a sitter or grab a friend and join us!

If you want to join us for this movie, just claim your tickets here: http://www.gofobo.com/rsvp/promotion/e489822d6eb257e40a8a7fbf70618395

If you've ever been to these things before, you know it can be a hassle to get seats sometimes, but we get reserved seats. Just let me know that you are going and we will reserve your spots!

Hope to see you tonight!