My new hands!

The wintertime does a number on my hands. The coldness, combined with all the extra handwashing and germ killin' turns them into two sorry lumps of coral. But no more! I have found Ocean Salt by one of my favorite companies, Lush I've been a Lush junky for years and years, but mostly for their amaaaaaazing bath bombs. Ocean Salt is a facial scrub - but it works great all over. Try scrubbing your hands with Ocean Salt and then following up with a nice handcream (I use Lush's Dream Cream). I find you get maximum sloughage when you apply the scrub to damp-ish, almost dry hands. (not soaking wet). You will be so smoov! And you'll want to hold hands with someone all day.

Clocky.

I don't have much need for an alarm clock - C6 does a fine job of making sure we are up plenty early every day. If I REALLY needed to ABSOLUTELY be awake on time OR ELSE, maybe I'd consider getting Clocky - an alarm clock that actually jumps off your nightstand so you can't press "snooze" more than once!

"Clocky. The alarm clock that runs away and hides when you don't wake up. Clocky gives you one chance to get up. But if you snooze, Clocky will jump off of your nightstand and wheel around your room looking for a place to hide. Clocky is kind of like a misbehaving pet, only he will get up at the right time."

I have a feeling good ol' Clocky wouldn't last too long in our household...after a few wake-ups with Clocky, methinks I'd be mighty tempted to clock Clocky.

Lincolnmania!

Q: What could be better than one Abraham Lincoln?
A: Five Abraham Lincolns!



um...well I guess they are not all Abrahams - you got your Mary Todd Lincoln, yer Ringo Lincoln, Abe Vigoda Lincoln, Lancelot Lincoln, and Hot Rod Lincoln - THE STINKIN' LINCOLNS!!!

I'm sad that I had to miss the annual Presidents' Day weekend show of The Stinkin' Lincolns, my pal Johnny Black's band of Abes. They are the rockingest Abe Lincolns you EVAH did see! It has been awhile since I have seen them, but the vision of multi-Abes rockin' out at the Abbey (or Abe-y?) Lounge is seared into my memory. SEARED! Seriously - one of the funnest and best shows I've seen, the Lincolns, a couple years back now, in all their mole-covered glory. I damn well better not miss next years show. Maybe if "Hot Rod" Lincoln can't make the show, I'll fill in as "Babe-raham" Lincoln.

ps: "Lincoln" looks so wrong when you keep writing/reading it. Did I spell it wrong? No! Look! Read! Lincoln! Isn't it weird looking?

Another Fave C6 Eatery...

Yesterday, our pals Jen and Arlo came over for a visit. We had some quality play dough time, and then we headed out for dinner at one of my fave places to bring C6 - Kelly's Roast Beef! We go to the one in Saugus, as it is just a couple minutes away. And it is biiiiig. And it has giant fish tanks! Wooo! And, until recently, there was a fish that looked exACTly like Nemo. Umm...we haven't seen Nemo in a few visits...he must be on vacation. We always liked searching for Nemo...(mayherestinpeace?!) One time we went to Kelly's with my Mum and she got a fish sammich. C6 tried a little bit and really liked it. After lunch, we stopped at the fishtank again to look for Nemo. When we found him, C6 said "Eat Nemo!" and pretended to gulp him down quickly. Yum!

Kelly's is a good place to go with kids because it is so BIG and family-friendly. There are things to look at, like the fish and a couple of big wooden merry go round horses on display. There is a separate room with a big chalkboard and fishtank and a tiny replica of a carosel. I love that they have plenty of highchairs with wheels on them - it makes it so much easier to get in line and order, pick up the food, and get to the table when it is just the 2 of us. I can just roll him along without worrying that C6 will bolt. (Though, he is getting really good about staying close by and listening to me - I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this trend will continue...)

Also? The roast beef sammiches are scrumptious. C6 is as hooked as I am. I'm looking forward to the warmer weather and visiting the original Kelly's on Revere Beach with C6. I haven't been there in eons!

24

Dudes. Awhile ago, I wrote about how I'm all back into watching 24 after my hiatus from watching. Well - awhile back, C5 and I missed a week, and we've been trying to catch up - we save the episodes on comcast dvr. We like to watch it together. Rather, I INSIST we watch it together, cuz I get too NERDVOUS otherwise. Anyhoo...tonight I went to play the episode from a couple of weeks ago and it had mysteriously disappeared from our list. Oops. Perhaps I erased it, or maybe C6, endlessly fascinated with the remote, did it in. Oh no! How will we ever catch up, missing an episode???! Not to worry. Did you know that you can watch tv online for free? Go to tv-links.co.uk and see what shows they have to offer. I'm tellin' ya, I soooo worked the internets in a jiffy this evenin' - within 5 minutes after our "where's that episode?" dilemma, we were up and running, watching the missed show. (Secretly? I was thinking I was all CTU-n-stuff.) I was happy with how quickly it loaded, and it was better quality than expected. Yippee! Hurrah for instant gratification.

...but I forgot to mention that I love shopping for C6...

I should have specified in my I'm-not-a-shopper post that I'm not much for shopping for myself BUT I loooooove shopping for C6. Mostly, for C6, I'm an Old Navy shopper- they have surprisingly cool & affordable toddler boy stuff from time to time. The Children's Place is good for basic stuff like different colored cargo pants and long sleeve t's. And socks. Not too pricey. Babystyle if on the expensive side, but they have some splurge-worthy items from time to time - I got him a t-shirt with the silhouette of rockband instruments - I loved this one!

I just splurged and got C6 this ultra-funkay shirt, and it is my most favoritest one ever:

I got it here, at Ferdinand. I think I am going to go NUTS and get one for myself too - they have the same design on adult-sized shirts too. Can you see what it is? It is a squirrel! Playin' the SNARE DRUM!!! I am in love. Look! I'm SHOPPIN'!!!!

One-liner

C6: "*burp*...geSUNDheit!!!!"

C sechs sprechen Deutsches! (but I don't)

me: (sneezing) "ah-CHOO!"
C6: "Gesundheit!"

How to cop my awecellent look

I wouldn't say that shopping is one of my favorite things to do. Especially not these days, with C6 in tow. He's not exactly the most patient shopper. And trying to squeeze into a pair of jeans in a changing room with a toddler who is trying to escape said changing room isn't my idea of fun.

I've found some great clothes online. Shoes too! Of course you all know about Zappos.com. They are the best - no delivery charge, and they pay return delivery too, if you need to return them. You can find almost any shoe there. HURRAH!!!!

Supermaggie.com has some really beautiful t shirts! I ordered one of the long sleeve ts with dandelion seeds printed all over. It is a good quality, very cool looking shirt. C6 loves it too. After I ordered it, (and before it was delivered) I got an email from them apologizing that it was taking so long (I hadn't noticed, actually). They offered 20% off my next order for my troubles. When the shirt came (with a nice handwritten note) I was so happy with the shirt, hellyeah I wanted to order more stuff. (I ordered another long sleeve t, with stars and pine trees on it). I was just impressed with their customer service. Who knows, maybe they offer 20% off to everyone in the hopes of having people buy lots more stuff? I don't care!

I bought a t shirt at Toothpastefordinner.com that is so adorable and fits nicely, too. It says "daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang." on it. There are so many fun shirts I probably will order another soon. (I'm partial to the "Exercising...It Blows!!" one.)

Ahhhh, shopping from the comfort of home!

(But only when C6 is asleep - if not, he'll sit on the keyboard to make you stop doing what you're doing and want to play "hmmm". ("Hmmmm" is the game formerly known as "where's Calvin?", where he tells you where he's gonna hide, and you have to say "hmmmm" and look for him. All. Day. Long.)

C6 does the abc's...

"a b c d e f g,
h i j k, elmo elmo p..."

Revisiting a classic- Purple People Eater!

A couple of days ago on Jack's Big Music Show, we saw a video for a band called Comic Book Heroes. The song was "Purple People Eater"! One of my fave songs when I was a wee lass. This band is adorable! C6 and I loved the Purple People Eater in the video. Here 'tis!



And here is a video of the original - though I never saw the video til this morning! It rules, though I wish we could see the Purple People Eater a little better.

Addendum to "MOMMY" discussion

C6 has taken to calling me Mummio, which I love. We are Mummio and Daddio. Most everything now ends in -io. I like to play along with this - i.e. "Calvio, let's go upstairsio, and changio your poopio diapio!" He thinks it is all pretty funnio

C6 and Mummio’s Music ROUNDUP!

As you may have gathered, C6 and I love to listen to music. I try not to be overly controlling in what C6 gets to hear. I believe that kids should hear good music though. I think that kids like all kinds of music - simple and complicated, fast and slow…the whole shebang. Some "kids music" is great, some is not. But I think kids should be allowed to hear "kids music"! We are not too cool for "kids music" in C6ville. I think some parents go too far in their music choices for their little ones by only letting them hear ONLY what THEY like. The only real rule we have in our house is, "Please. No Barney". ( However, The Barnies are more than welcome!)

Dan Zanes
Congrats Dan Zanes on winning a Grammy for best Children's Album for "Catch That Train". I probably wouldn't have started listening to Dan Zanes if I didn't have C6 – I'm not hugely in love with this style of music, but I have grown to like it. Some songs we like better than others. A lot of his songs are traditional songs from all over the globe. I really respect what he does, and am happy that he is so successful. We are going to see his show next month at the Somerville Theatre with our friends Jen and Arlo (Jen and Arlo: wife and son of Well/Orbit bandmate Jeff Robbins). Arlo is one of C6's best buddies. Hey, he deserves his own mention! Here…

Arlo
Arlo has a few videos created by his Uncle Liam that are just the best! Here is Arlo rockin' out to Queen's "We Will Rock You". Here is Arlo's Theme Song. And here is another fun little ditty. Now this is good kids music for good kids!

They Might Be Giants –Here Come The ABCs
They Might Be Giants' CD/DVD "Here Come the ABCs" is C6's oldest and favoritest music and the best kids music in my opinion. Catchy, clever & cute. LOVE IT! We also like their CD" No!" The songs are really just the best blend of kid-friendly and adult-friendly. The humor is great too. The song "Violin" is kind of freaky and C6 used to by HYPNOTIZED by it whenever I played it for him.

Ralph's World
We got the CD Ralph's World because we heard one of the songs somewhere and C6 really dug it. The CD came with a DVD , which was a nice surprise. Apparently this Ralph dude is doing really well, along the lines of Dan Zanes' success - he's got the Disney Channel conncection too. When I first watched the DVD I thought "hm, that guy reminds me of a dark-haired version of Garth from "Wayne's World". Hmmmm..."Ralph's World" – COINCIDENCE? Though I'm not entirely thrilled with this music, I can't let my opinions get in the way if C6 really enjoys it - and he really does. Actually, "Dance Around" and "Puppydog" are both pretty infectious. Ralph seems like a likeable enough guy, and his cute daughter appears in the videos alongside her dad onstage.

Terrible Twos - If You Ever See An Owl
The Terrible Twos "If You Ever See an Owl" is kid music brought to you by the guy from The Get Up Kids/New Amsterdams. For the most part – it is gentle, sweet indie rock. It sounds great. "Smickey" is the current fave track for both of us. It is a song about burping I think. C6 likes the little kid's voice saying "Smickey!!!!" (the li'l kid's word for "excuse me", apparently.)

Pancake Mountain
I wrote about stumbling across Pancake Mountain, an amazing kidsrocknrolldanceparty based in D.C. little while ago. I received the DVD shortly after ordering it and I immediately popped it in the player. We sat down to watch, but C6 wanted to do something else and we haven't revisited it together yet. The litle bit that I saw is HILARIOUS! And Anti Flag rocks the theme song! The DVD I got has performances by Ted Leo & The Pharmacists and Shonen Knife, among other greats. If C6 doesn't like it, no big whoop, cuz I sure do.

Audra Rox
We saw a video for Audra Rox called "I hope My Mama Says Yes" on Noggin and it was really cute and fun. C6 was taken with Audra's long hair with pink streaks. The song is kinda rockabilly, with upright bass, and a backyard hodown feel. Just a whole lotta fun goin' on.

Wiggles
At first, C6 wasn't really into The Wiggles. And that was fine with me! I'm not sure what happened, but he's a hardcore Wiggles fan now! We both enjoy the song "Fruit Salad". It reminds me of something that I would write. (for the uninitiated, the chorus of the Fruit Salad song goes "Fruit salad. Yummy, yummy." Straight to the point.) Each show has a segment of "Dance Lessons with Dorothy the Dinosaur", where 2 of the Wiggles dancers teach you a new step. I like to do the airplane dance! And the HULA!

Spare the Rock Spoil the Child (podcast)
I just started listening to the Northhampton, MA based Spare The Rock, Spoil The Child podcast, and I like their approach - kids rock alongside big kids rock. An interesting mix. The blog is a good read, too!

KEXP John in the morning (radio/podcast)
KEXP Seattle's John In The Morning is always good for fabulous tunes, old and new. C6 was really groovin' to Blur's "Advert" yesterday. And so was I!

Well, that's about it for now. There are a couple more CDs for us to mention - part 2 of C6 and Mummio's Musical Roundup coming soon!

Favorite Local Hangouts

Here's a quick list of some of my favorite local places (in and around Melrose, MA):

The Bohemian Coffeehouse is a new coffee place not too far from our home. I'm not wild about the name, but I *am* wild about this place - C6 and I go on a somewhat regular basis for chocolate chip cookies, chocolate croissants, and oreo cookie ice cream (for c6) - and chai, peppermint mocha, coffee (for me). It is a small place - only 2 tables. Whenever we go, they are playing music I like - Doves, Elvis Costello, other stuff I didn't know but really liked. Hillary, one of the owners, is a friendly, cool, interesting person who makes you feel welcome and comfortable. We love the place!

When I get a chance to run out for lunch by myself, I like to hit Sushi Corner in Melrose. It is off the parking lot behind Shaw's. I'm not a hardcore sushi-er, but I do like a California roll or spicy tuna roll every once in awhile. Last time I went I tried the "Melrose Roll", which was spectacularly good. (and big!) It was spicey tuna, avocado, salmon, spicey mayo (I think), and little fishy eggies on top. YUM! Delightful.

We love going to J. Pace market, in Saugus. It is a wonderful Italian market, with a bakery and butcher counter...they have EVERYTHING. Produce section...Italian groceries...fresh cheeses, and a whole section of delicious prepared foods, and ready-to-cook foods. We're big fans of the chicken noodle soup. Beware - they only make it on Mondays and Tuesdays! Also love the marinated bbq steaktips. TANGY. C6 always seems to get a free cookie out of the lovely ladies at the bakery counter. He doesn't even have to bat his eyelashes!

We like to go to Breads-n-Bits of Ireland once in awhile for a cup of irish oatmeal or an orange chocolate scone. Recently they had snowman-shaped sugar cookies, decorated with colored sugar. Black sugar for the snowman hat, blue sugar eyes - C6 loved it. And he looked like a little Goth with his black/blue lips afterward.

Hungry for some Vietnamese food? I am! I like to get spring rolls and the vermicelli noodles with beef at Saigon Noodle in Malden. Malden has a couple of other Vietnamese restaurants but I have yet to try them. I loves me my Saigon Noodle! They're always very nice to me there. Extra peanut sauce, please!

For a quick pint when we're able to, C5 and I will hop on over to Harrington's in Wakefield. Nice little place with a good menu - My fave is the salad with grilled chicken, dried cranberries, goat cheese, and pine nuts. Comfortable atmosphere, just right. We likey.

Now I'm all hungry and thirsty! Daaaaaaaaang.

Nights Out

I don't go out much at night, with the exception of rehearsals or the rare night out for Thai food with my friend Robin, or the even rarer night out with former coworker friends Carolyn and Melinda. That's pretty much it. But a few weeks ago my friends' cover band was playing nearby (only 10 minutes from my house!) so I decided to go. C5 would hold down the fort, and I snuck out after C6 went to sleep.

My friends Jimmy and Timmy (or James and Tim) are 2 of the swellest, finest people I know. I was happy to go out and see their band, have a couple of beers, and hang out with the gang. What I was not prepared for was this: when I hit the dance floor with my ladyfriends, I found myself pulling out dance moves I had learned from Dorothy the Dinosaur on The Wiggles.

Not that anyone noticed. When I realized what I was doing I totally cracked up. And I looked around to see all the girls dancin' all sexy-like, gyratin' an' puttin' their hands up in their hair, shakin' their boo-TAY. And then me. Jumping like a kangaroo.

***

Sometimes C6 reminds me of a cat we had when I was a teenager. Whenever I tried to do my homework, the cat would sit on my book or paper, preventing me from getting the work done. C6 is just ON me all the time. But I don't mind so much. He reminds me of a little koala bear, too. Remember those little koala bear clippie things you'd stick on your shirt or rainbow suspenders? I want one. But not the big one. The little one. Not the big one!

***

Ad Frank & The F.E.W. played with Freezepop at TT's, and boy, do I so love them! They put on such a fun fun show. Total 80's-ness. They make me smile. And hop like a kangaroo.

Homestarrunner at home!

I am so psyched. I just discovered that C6's little keyboard/microphone/rhythm machine plays some of the same little tunes as heard on homestarrunner.com. Brilliant. Now when C6 and I play homestarrunner it is WAY more authentic-like!!!

Messy Day

Every once in awhile C6 and I will have MESSY DAY. Yesterday, we made some homemade play dough. We used a simple recipe, that I think was on Mr. Rogers back in the day. Totally old school. Here is the recipe. Mix 2 parts flour and 1 part water. Make mess! Add a little food coloring if you want. Even more mess! HURRAH!!!!!! The dough is more elastic-y than play dough, because, um, it is real dough. C6 loved mixing the dough in a bowl with his hands.

Last messy day we decided that fingerpainting was fun but there was more fun to be had in...TOE PAINTING! So we took off our socks and got a-paintin'. Now that. That was messy day.

It was awesome.

And...we missed it.

Guess what!? I finally caught c6's "spew-itis". Yup, it hit me, and I fell. I fell hard. It sucked. But I'm back! Hurrah! Though...this germ thing is really getting out of hand and must stop. C6 and I seem to have traded illnesses - now he's got a mega-cough and congestion. WHEN WILL IT END???

I'm a bit bummed that we were still illin' yesterday. And here's why:


I had just come upon a musical act that looked and sounded quite intriguing. That act would be Gustafer Yellowgold. Gustafer is a cute cartoon creature. At a Gustafer show, the cartoon illustrations are projected, while a couple of musicians play the gentle, sweet (but not cloying) music. Parts of it reminded me of Radiohead, but it really has a Beatles/Harry Nilsson thing going on, too. Here is a description from the website:

Since his creation a couple of years ago, Gustafer Yellowgold has become an international phenomenon. Live "Gustafer" shows, accompanied by live music, have been acclaimed by the New York Times, which said, "The show is a cross between 'Yellow Submarine' and Dr. Seuss, filtered through the lens of the Lower East Side." Time Out NY Kids magazine called it "Beatlesque…very beautiful."

Gustafer Yellowgold was created by illustrator/singer/songwriter Morgan Taylor. On the debut DVD Gustafer Yellowgold's Wide Wild World Gustafer comes to life. The minimally animated illustrations are accompanied by Taylor's catchy original story-songs for a truly different multimedia experience that will entrance children and adults alike.

So. Here's why I was bummed: I had just discovered this cool thing. I wondered as I lay in bed, still ill, "hm, I wonder if they'll be trotting into town any time soon?". I had the laptop nearby, so I checked and yes, they were coming to town! To Somerville! How close! How convenient! And when would that be? IN JUST A COUPLE OF HOURS!!!!

Dang. My timing is really just not that great these days.

Though - I must say, I managed to do two rockshows in and around the times I was really sick. That's gotta count for something...somewhere, somehow.

Yes. I DO want a medal.

The Plaid Lad

(Jonathan Wiggs / Globe Staff)


Here is an article on my friend and bandmate, Mr. Ad Frank. It was in the Boston Globe Magazine yesterday. Cute!

A short conversation with C6

Me: how do you feel today, Calvin?
C6: YUMMY!!
Me: of course you do!

...see?

See? i'm a-rockin'. rockin' an'-a-smirkin'.


Me, shakin' it @ TT's. (photo by sushiesque)

I like my new band. I've been spoiled over the years; so many fine bandmates.
This past weekend Mr. Ad Frank and I spent many hours traveling to and fro NYC. It was totally like old times - meaning we (okay, just me) were like a couple of 10 year old boys with the silly potty jokes. Yeah. You read it right. I was like TWO 10 year olds. TWICE the number two.

ITEM: I think my new bandmates might have caught on that I'm a dorkus maximus. but just in case, shhhhhhh. don't tell'em!

This weekend was action packed: rocknroll in the big city! AUTO MALFUNCTIONZZ!!! sickness on the homefront! b r o k e n waterpipes and ensuing FLOoD! Zoinx!!!!!

ME: happy cuz I got to hang out with my wunnerful pal RAMIKEN this weekend. (Rami=Robert Brazier, my drum buddy from Well). He is a gadabout! And the finest strutter I know.

Had rehearsal tonight, came home, watched "The Office" on dvr (YEAH!) and ate some pistachios. Bueno. I am going to sleep now!

Love,
Scurvyann
xoxo

ps: a shoutout to my reader, Susan! Woo! Yeah you! This one goes out to SOOZN! Inna front row! Yow! Mama! Woo! You are one FINE lay-day! mmm- MMMM! YEAH!!!!