Click to see artwork from last week's Art Night.

Having a Ball or How I Managed to Fit Into My Pre-Sophie Jeans I just started doing a (new to me) program called The Light Weigh about a month ago and it really, really works - I'm finally fitting into clothes I haven't worn for two years. It's like reclaiming part of myself. Here's the program in a nutshell: you only eat when you're hungry, and when you do, you only eat about a cup at a time of whatever you want until you're hungry again. It's also faith-based, and although I'm a Nice Catholic Girl I find the woman a little intense for me, but the basics make a lot of sense to me. It questions what emptiness inside you're trying to fill - actual hunger, emotional hunger, spiritual hunger - and then once you've identified it, you can satisfy it. I could go on and on about this, but one of the main things that really hits home with me is "God's Portion" - the part you leave on your plate. You offer it up as a sacrifice for whatever you're currently praying for. It gives me several reminders throughout the day to remember others and say a little prayer for them - lately I've been praying for her and for them. A couple of weeks ago I saw a picture of a little girl Sophie's age on a news program and it broke my heart - I had to turn off the TV right away because I knew the news wasn't going to be good - and I offered up every little sacrifice for her. I will never meet these people, but I'm doing whatever I can for them just the same. So what's the deal with the ball? At work currently, I don't use a chair. I have been sitting on a bright blue exercise ball since I read in Shape Magazine 5 years ago that doing so requires such a micro-balancing act that it's like doing stomach crunches all day long. So far the main thing to feel the burn is my back, which my co-worker says is because the muscles are weak. (Hey, now that Angela weighs in at about 16 pounds, I really need strong back and stomach muscles - the stronger the better!) Along with daily stomach crunches and pushing three babies around the park, I may get this body back into shape yet.

Sophie spelled a word last night! Last night Sophie was playing with her refrigerator magnet letters. She was really quiet, and when I went to look at her I saw that she had taken two of the refrigerator letters and put them together on top of a laundry basket - she spelled "UP". We asked her what it said, and she kept looking at us really intently, and finally, she said, "Pup!" which is in the beginning of her favorite, Hop on Pop (UP, PUP, Pup is up). She was pretty darn close and she knew it meant something. We've shown her how to spell things with the letters before, but not that - and Paul swears that although they were spelling other words from Hop on Pop earlier in the evening, they didn't do that one. Amazing, huh?

Look who's wireless! NO MORE MONITORS! EVER! We're having a tea party to celebrate! For lots more pictures of the muffins, the cinnabun, and the other assorted baked goods our family is known by, click here, here, and here.

I swear I have SO many things to say and not enough time to do it in. I want to write about how I lost weight and can finally fit into my pre-Sophie jeans. I want to write about how lack of sleep from all three babies teething makes me want to throw myself in front of a bus. I want to write about things that have absolutely nothing at all to do with babies in any way, shape, or form. And then I want to post some paintings. In the meantime, take a look at this utterly fascinating site... Enjoy! Color in Motion: An Interactive Experience of Color Communication and Color Symbolism

You say it's your birthday... I wrote in this morning to my local Beatles Breakfast program with this request for a dedication: My name is Elena. It's my birthday today, and we've been up all night with our 5-month-old twins and 1-1/2 year old. Please play me something to wake me up! ps ~ We listen to your program every Sunday, and my daughter Sophie loves to shout, "Beatles! Beatles! Beatles!" So when they read this, the DJ added, "Way to go, Sophie!" and she just stopped in her tracks when I explained that the man on the radio was talking to her. She was so excited that we both jumped up and down and danced to my song. (I give the DJ extra credit for not picking "Birthday.") The big 33 list. I have also been working on a list of 33 things I would like to accomplish this year, in addition to making a 33 "life list". Interestingly enough, it's easier to come up with the life list, since I don't have to actually commit to doing them before next August 15th. ;) In any case, I'm not done with either, but I will post when they're finished.

Snapshots of August. Each of these things deserves its own post, and hopefully I will be able to, but for starters, here are little snapshots of life on my planet: Today is our 7th wedding anniversary. We have now loved each other for 10 years. I think about all the blessings I have, and the way my life is now - the children, the house - and I think, all these things only exist because we love each other. Amazing. When Paul asked me to marry him, one of the reasons I said Yes is because I knew that he would help me grow - and that he would help me make every one of my dreams come true. I knew that together we would be able to do amazing things. And guess what - I was absolutely right! Yesterday, the twins were baptized. At last. It seemed like such a long hard struggle to get them out of the hospital and into a life of normalcy - they are now 5 months old but I was afraid to set a date for the christening earlier because I never knew when Angela would be able to come home for it. We took her off the monitor for the ceremony, and both of them behaved beautifully the entire time. Their heads still smell like chrism, it takes forever for that spicy oily smell to go away, but I kind of like it. (Dear friends: we only invited our immediate families, and even that - 10 people - was almost more than we could handle. Believe me, we wanted you there, and there will be a meet-the-twins day in the future, but life with twins is 20 times harder than anything else I've ever done.) Last week we had a meeting of the moms - the wonderful Michelle and Jill took a road trip and I finally got to meet these amazing women I've been talking to online for the past 2 years. We've formed a little circle of Mama-encouragement; they are true and living proof that one can be a mother and still be an amazing artist. When I asked Michelle what they wanted to do, she said, "I don't really care, as long as there's food and we can talk." So we went out to our favorite place for lunch, and talked until the staff started hovering in that polite way that lets you know you're about to get kicked out so they can close, and then we went out for gelato and talked and talked until they started to turn the lights out. We could have talked all day and not run out of things to say - nothing was awkward and there was only lots of encouragement and ideas flying through the air. (Note to self: illustrate that.) We all made gifts for each other, and that, seemed fitting too - that each of us thought to give of her talents to the other two. A quick word about the two of them: Michelle is sunny, smiling, and told the most amazing story about how she used to use her mom's art supplies late at night (Michelle, you have to write this up!). Jill really listens to what you have to say, and has such beautiful eyes that are always twinkling - you know she's thinking of something good! (Jill, I'm still waiting to get that manuscript - send it on over, I'd be honored to read it!) They are incredibly inspiring and I was so thrilled to meet them that after they left, I danced with glee around the living room, hugging Paul for watching the babies so that I could have a few hours. And next week... it's my birthday. Let the good times roll.

In a previous comment, Julian asked, "What superpowered meganutrient jacked food do you eat?????? I want in on this." Welp, other than the fact that I've always seemed to have more energy than the average bear, I've started cooking really well for my family. And I think that's made a huge difference in my sense of well-being. I was struck by the fact that I would make extremely wholesome and nutritious food for Sophie yet thought nothing of eating TV dinners and Hot Pockets, in between rushing from here to there and back again. And that's if we remembered to eat at all. So now every Sunday afternoon I make meals for the whole week. I plan them out Friday, go shopping with Sophie on Saturday, and then bake on Sunday afternoon. Typically, I'll be listening and singing along to this while baking our weekly supply of muffins (this week it's pumpkin, honey, and whole wheat), mashed potatoes, and a loaf of sun-dried tomato bread (the bread machine makes it SO easy!). Then I make one big-ticket item - this week it was calzones, last week it was eggplant parm, that sort of thing. Every other week I make hummus for lunch (I'm into turkey, hummus and spinach sandwiches right now). And I make decaf sun tea with mint and lemon every couple of days, as often as we need it. This sounds like a lot, but it's really not that much - and I can reheat things throughout the week. I heat up the oven once and save lots of energy, and I know exactly what everyone - including Sophie - is having for any given meal. That saves me lots of time and planning later on. But what's the point of all this homemade food if you can't enjoy it? So now we always set the table nicely, use candles when we can, and have flowers on the table. The other day Paul and I snuck out onto the porch and ate chocolate cookies in the moonlight after the kids were asleep. It's all about savoring. And being at peace.

Fantastic, wonderful, glorious news This is the smile of a boy who no longer needs to wear a monitor. EVER.

iPod me! Okay, with three babies at home, we can't afford to buy an iPod, but we just might be able to win one! Here's the deal: If you're looking for a great printer with very reasonable prices who does great 4-color work, I can highly recommend PrintingForLess.com. (I would highly recommend them even if it weren't for this contest!) They printed my Christmas cards, and a gorgeous job they did, too. If 5 people do business with Printing For Less now through August 31, and use this referral number: RP1XB4OXE each of those people gets $25 off their order, and we get an iPod. Just tossing it out there... ;)

Saved by the paint. I have been painting a little almost every night, and I swear it's what's keeping me sane. A few weeks ago the only thing that was getting me through each day was knowing I could paint something - no matter how bad it was, didn't matter - and I would think about it and plan it all day. I'm doing much better now, but I still feel much better if I have a little paint under my nails now and then. On Monday I went to the local art supply outlet - I realized, eerily, that I had not been there in about a year. A YEAR! I wandered up and down each and every aisle; partly because at long last they've finally gotten their inventory into some semblance of organization, and partly because darnit, I was like a starving man at the all-you-can-eat buffet, and I wanted to feast my eyes on all the colors. I spent quite a while in the paint aisle, just breathing in the aroma of oil paints and turpentine. I use watercolors now, but they just don't smell the same. I dealt with salespeople who had no clue, but on the whole I had myself a wonderful time and spent way too much money. I look at it this way; it's a YEAR's worth of art supplies, and you'd better believe they will be put to good use. We (finally!) got a digital camera, so I'll be posting pictures of my zillion projects as they reach completion. I will be painting, superglueing, typing, sketching, and illustrating like there's no tomorrow. Amen. Other really interesting bits of art in the news: The typeface chosen for the new Freedom Tower has its roots in the subway system of New York. (thanks, Allyson!) What happens when someone steals your art and sells it on Ebay?

Strolling along... So my website is 5 years old this month! I can hardly believe it.... you can check out 4 years of previous versions here. In honor of the anniversary, I've added a "reading' list of the books on my nightstand right now in the column to the right. This feature will be updated as I read; and I have to warn you all, I am quite the voracious reader. Expect it to change frequently. The biggest (and I think, coolest) change is that I will now be illustrating my entries, as often as I can. They'll most often be watercolour sketches from my sketchbook. I'll add more about the picture above, but yes, we do go for a walk almost every day; Sophie always looks over her shoulder to talk to me; she needs to have flowers on our walks; that's exactly what I was wearing that day; and you can see the twins' monitors in the basket below the strollers. The babies weigh about 50 lbs, and that's not even including the stroller. I'm not kidding!

Grrrrrrr. So this was my morning: on my way to work, I got pulled over for having a taillight out, and it turns out my registration had expired. In March. What was I doing in March... hmmm.... oh yes, having twins. Apparently you can have your car seized and towed for not having up to date registration, a little fact I was quite unaware of. But I must have looked pitiful enough, and explained about the twins, and got teary, because I was let off with just a ticket for the light. (Phew!) If such a situation happens to you, you too will need the following links to get you back up and running (and laughing again): NJ DMV - got me re-registered, online, in about 5 minutes. Everything's peachy now, so Mom, don't worry. Eugene Mirman - "Hey Jude" and the "Who Medley" are my faves so far. Party Hard! - Ahhhh, college days... what happens when 3 kids, a boombox, and a video camera make the rounds. (warning: super long)

Reinventing myself. After Sophie was born, I had a really hard time figuring out who the heck I was. Like, can a mom still be cool? Is it ridiculous to wear hip-hugger jeans and a fairy t-shirt? Should I cut my hair and was it okay to still wear it in braids? (The answers, thankfully, are yes, heck no, no, and of course it is.) Now with the twins, I'm more secure, but I feel the need to make some subtle (and not-so-subtle) changes. I find myself being more introspective, more contemplative. *I wonder how much longer I can make organic, no-sugar meals for Sophie yet still eat a Hot Pocket standing up in front of the refrigerator. The answer: make more wholesome food since I'm making it anyway and freeze it. *The more I work at Mutts, the less meat I eat. This makes perfect sense to me. *I'm having trouble reconciling the fact that I will download music off the internet for free with the fact that I don't want anyone to steal people's artwork. It's the same thing. No more free music for me. *I also find that if I squeeze in time to paint at night, I wind up being much, MUCH more able to handle the babies and my workload in a sane manner. I literally need to paint every night to make it through the next day. So at the end of the summer, I may just end up being a wild vegetarian Mama artist who takes time to work on writing her first book. (More on that later.) And this, too, makes perfect sense to me.

My first day back at work is tomorrow. I will be packing my backpack with the necessities: laptop, sketchbook, lunch, and cookies that I'm making tonight in celebration to share with the rest of the office. It's a little like the first day of school; I'll have all my clothes laid out and my lunch all bagged and ready to go. I will actually have a reason to get dressed in the morning. I know exactly what work awaits me when I return (and it's exciting to me) and I'm ready to hit the ground running. In terms of energy/exhaustion, this is going to wind up either being very good for me, or the thing that finally sends me over the edge. (I'm betting on the first one.) Send good vibes in the general direction of Metuchen tomorrow for me, please.

Question of the day: Should I cut my hair? The temptation is great to grab the scissors and just start hacking...

Painting my way through So I've come up with an idea that's literally getting me through my days lately... I've been painting a story, right off the top of my head, one page a night. I'm loosely basing the procedure on the comic-in-24-hours theory, but bending it to my schedule: one page in about one hour, done whenever I can get an hour free but trying to stick with consecutive days as much as possible. All I've been doing lately is dreaming of painting and wanting to have a paintbrush in my hand as soon as possible... but it's a good thing to dream about when your day is a never-ending cycle of sleep deprivation, formula, pee, burps, and picking up toddler food off the highchair. Power to the puppets! Way to go Avenue Q! I've wanted to go see this play for so long... this year's best musical has puppets aplenty, and many Sesame Street alumni in the cast. With songs like "It Sucks to Be Me" and "You're a Little Bit Racist", how can you lose?

Lots and lots and lots and lots of pictures here and here. More about motherhood, art, and possibilities, coming soon.