This week we’re on vacation with the kids, and we’ve had many of the usual struggles: rousing a tween and a teen from bed each morning and “encouraging” them to sightsee; the ongoing and extensive negotiations over who sits next to who that prompted me to ask Sadie why she isn’t on her school debate team; and the grumpiness brought on by tiredness and lack of privacy and personal space!
Everywhere we go, I think about how surreal it is that we - and all the people we’ve come into contact with - are going on with our lives, while a destructive and senseless war is causing so much suffering and fear for the people of Ukraine. I feel helpless - aside from giving money, there is little my family can do - but also hopeful, that the global coalition of businesses and governments allied against Russia might just prevail in the end.
And, of course, there have been many moments of joy during the past week, when I pinch myself that our family is lucky enough to be on a trip together, and getting along, most of the time. Here’s what made me happy this week.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Love,
Amelia
“Delveying” aka Becoming Chloe
I have been mildly obsessed with Anna Delvey ever since reading Jessica Pressler’s cover story in New York Magazine, and loved the recent mini series on Netflix.
But what I may have loved even more was last weekend’s SNL spoof on the series, Becoming Chloe, where Chloe Fineman used the distintive (and entirely nutty) Anna Delvey accent to get whatever she wanted.
I have been driving my kids crazy (and making them laugh) all week by doing my best Delvey and telling them to stop “Being So Dramatic” that “The Wire Transfer Is On The Way” and that “This Is Very V.I.P.”
Sleeping in One Room
We spent the first few nights of our trip sleeping in the same room, which doesn’t happen very often. On a couple of mornings, I woke up first, and lay quietly, listening to Jim, Sadie, and Teddy breathing as they slept.
It felt meditative, peaceful, and joyful, all being together, in one room, safe and tucked into bed.
Hugh Jackman with Tim Ferriss
I loved listening to Tim Ferriss interview Hugh Jackman on his podcast. I found his humility and his commitment to constant improvement in every aspect of his life - from his career to his relationships - incredibly inspiring.
I loved hearing Jackman talk about figuring out and following his calling in life and taking left turns when he should have gone right. And I was fascinated to hear about the ritual he has with his wife to read a book aloud to each other every morning for 30 minutes!
This Teen Insight
Traveling with loved ones is not always smooth sailing, and we’ve had plenty of squabbles this week - including the one Jim and I had via text message, two seats apart from each other, on an “extremely full flight" (as described by the flight crew).
So I loved it when 15-year-old Sadie turned to me immediately after I adjudicated yet another spat between her and her brother, Teddy, and said: “I don’t know how you and Dad handle having kids. It seems exhausting!”
Ah, the sweet sound of a child recognizing that we parents have a tough job!
Family Wordle
Doing the daily Wordle puzzle has become a morning routine for me; Jim does it most days too. What I didn’t realize, until this trip, was that Sadie and Teddy were aware of Wordle, and also doing it daily. Teddy also clued us all into another, harder, version - Quordle - with 4 puzzles.
The fact that my kids, who would not describe themselves as bookworms, are into an activity involving language and spelling, really gave me a thrill!