How to Play Santa

It's always fun to play Santa Claus, but it's really fun to do it unexpectedly.

I was offered the opportunity, as (read more)

Unravel and Weave

I knit and daydream on the train. Oh, and I listen to music and eavesdrop on loud talkers and cast my eye over other people's progress through the puzzle, but mostly I knit knit knit and purl purl purl. This is on the way home, mind you. On the way into work, I invariably read the paper, cover to cover, and do the Ken-Ken and some or all of the puzzle. But homeward bound is knitting time, at least until I finish the sweater.

Last night, I had this demented idea that there could be knitting on the Wii - if you can have cooking (chopping and stirring with your remote), why not knitting? The remote could be the  working needle, the nunchuck the left needle.  k2 p2, increase as necessary.  Right? Okay, maybe not.

There was a box on the doorstep when I got home - a Wii game. I opened it and the first word I saw was "yarn". Deja vu? A knitting game? I invented a knitting game in my head and it showed up on my doorstep? No, it's not a knitting game - it's called "Kirby's Epic Yarn" and it has a charming textile theme, all stitches and wool and applique. We haven't played it yet, but "Epic Yarn"? I'm still amused. Timing is everything.

Sword Fighting

The child, she is a natural at the Wii Sports Resort sword fighting.



However, I don't think she's going to win any Olympic medals in fencing. Her style is a little, shall we say, violent? All she does is bash her opponent on the head, and make Daddy fear for the safety of the television.

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In unrelated news, Painted Maypole was the random winner of my Pay It Forward. A small package is on its way to her.

Wardrobe Wednesday: Oh, The Outfits

Okay, after the last time I posted a picture of Miss M. in one of her fanciful get-ups, I vowed to take her picture every day for a week, partially because I was encouraged to do so by Jessica, who also has a child with a penchant for Outfits with a Capital O.

Needless to say, I didn't manage to take a picture every day for a week, but here are nine recent mug shots.

The "skirt" in the left most photo is actually an old nightie of my mother's. The shirt in the 2nd photo was a gift from Nonlinear Nora. The black velvet dress was mine, made by my mother, and the shoes are the red shoes of my childhood - she went to a birthday party in that outfit. The right-hand picture is her doing Wii boxing, in a thoroughly ordinary pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

In this set, note that she's wearing the same skirt in #1 and 3, and the same shirt in #2 and 4. Nearly all of her tights have holes in them, as in #1. In #2, she's wearing tights under summer length capris. #3 kind of takes the cake - patterned socks, patterned leggings, a purple skirt, a pink shirt, with a denim shirt/vest over - this was her "hippie" outfit - "I look like Berger!" Then again, #4 is kind of out there. She did not actually wear that scarf to school, however.

And once again, we've got the capri pants with tights underneath - this time with blue fair-isle patterned tights under engineer striped pants.

Someday, she's going to hate me for taking these pictures.

Whee!

So we finally (a month late!) got the Wii and Wii Fit hooked up. And, we seem to be hooked. The first words out of the girl's mouth this morning were "can we go exercise?"

She generally prefers to sit on the couch and watch me, because she's too uncoordinated to do anything right, but she did run around the house several times, running running running, carrying the little remote.

We all went through the Wii Fit calculations. Husband isn't going anywhere near it ever again, because it told him he was 57. I was tickled to be thought 36; and hysterical when the 5 year old was deemed to be 30. Because, you know, it's entirely possibly that I had her when I was six, right?

It's altogether amusing.

To Somebody's House Wii Go

Wow. Just wow. I spent the weekend mulling over the many posts and comments from people hoping for that Wii Fit that Nintendo is letting me give away.

The posts ranged from funny to poignant, and from witty to painful. There are lots of mamas out there hoping to lose baby weight - even with babes old enough to be walking and talking and going to school (though Heidi claims to have given birth to varmints, not children). Monkey's Momma and Marmite Breath can't ever set foot in their health-clubs again because of embarrassing treadmill incidents, and some are just too shy to ever go to a gym in the first place. Many people used to do (and love) yoga, but can't find the time to get out of the house to get to the yoga studio.  Rima signed up for Jazzercise, and then didn't go for a year - even though though they were billing her credit card every single month. 

Well Read Hostess nearly seduced me with a recipe that requires copious amounts of egg and butter.  Andi has flat out declared that she'll never be fat again.  Robbin needs a Wii Fit because she doesn't laugh as much as she once did, and her abs are suffering.

Melanie and PicaboDaddy both recounted their video game history, because after all, what's the Wii Fit but the latest in a long line of video games?

And the posts got personal!  Nicole included a photo, with personalized plea on a blackboard, and Cold Spaghetti enlisted her son to make a video.  Ree says she'll make out with me if she wins.

Rick started a blog just to enter the contest, because they need one to take with them when they move to Ethiopia next summer.  On the other hand, Jen declined to participate, because she can't imagine taking one to the jungle with her.

Furrow wants a Wii Fit, because she likes the idea of quantifying her exercise (her cellphone has a pedometer - go figure.)  Stimey wants to set a good example for her kids.  And Painted Maypole - bless her creative heart - rewrote a Shel Silverstein poem as her entry.

But the post that got to me, the one that moved me the most, was from She She.  I can't quite put a finger on it, but her beautifully written and naked tale of her weight struggles - alongside the advice she wants to pass along to her children - resonated with me in a way that demanded that She She be awarded the Wii Fit.  

Here's a little bit of what she said: 

A couple of weeks ago, a friend asked me what would be the one piece of advice I would give to my children if I knew it was the only advice they would take. Without hesitation, I said, “I would tell them to say ‘yes’. Some opportunities only come once. Say ‘yes’.”

There are so many things I didn’t say ‘yes’ to because of my weight. Hiking through the Puerto Rico rain forest, dancing with a Frenchman, having sex with the light on. 

I look back at my 20 and 30 year old selves, and I want to shake them by the shoulders and shout at them, “Say ‘yes’! You will only be here once! Stop using your weight to protect you from new experiences! Stop using it as an excuse not to participate in your life! Say ‘yes’!”

I know, unless disaster strikes me, that I will someday be a 52 year old, and hopefully a 62 and 72 year old. If I’m terrifically lucky, 82 and 92. I don’t want my future self admonishing my 42 year old self to say 'yes'. 

Some opportunities only come once.

I know my weight struggle will be a lifelong one. Genes, habits, and a big taste for cream sauce dictate this. Nothing will make it less so -- not acupuncture, not special tea, not denial. But I feel like I’m ready to take it on. Again. I think I’m ready to say yes to my very own life.

Thank you all for participating - I wish I had a prize for everyone.

You know, I'm actually sore

Muscles. I have muscles that are sore. Go figure.

The Wii Fit party was at my house the other night. It was a riot.

The team arrived, flew into action, installed three Wii Fit set-ups (using our TV plus two they brought), commandeered the kitchen to prep and plate food, made sangria, stashed all the bags and boxes in the garage and started the indoctrination of the guests.

I'm "snowboarding".

People laughed and "ski-jumped" and ate and "hula-hooped" and drank and "rhythm-boxed". They stared with great concentration at the TVs as they tried to ride the bubble down the stream or gaze mindfully at a burning candle. There was aerobic stepping, and yoga, and tightrope walking, not to mention penguin sliding and table tilting.

At the end of the evening, the team handed out Wii Fits (and yoga mats and exercise suits) to the guests. There was shrieking and carrying on like we were on Oprah or something.

And then they cleaned up, stashed some tasty leftovers in my fridge and went merrily on their way, spreading Wii cheer in their wake.

The muscles across/under my scapulae are sore. I think it was the boxing. Running up and down the stairs all the time means that my leg muscles aren't too terrible. But boxing? I don't do a lot of hitting. I think this might could actually be a way to get in shape in the privacy of my own home.

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You still have a chance to win a Wii Fit (and the Wii console). Pop on over to this post before midnight tomorrow, and let loose with why you need one to get you moving.

Working on Your New Year's Resolutions Yet?

Every year, I make the same three new year's resolutions:

1. Eat less
2. Exercise more
3. Dress better

And every year, I really don't do anything about anything. Because, I like to eat good food, I don't have time to exercise beyond hiking up and down the hill to the train station, and I really like wearing jeans every day. It's my uniform.

Long ago, I had time to exercise. I rowed crew in college (exhilarating) and I've dabbled in running (boring). My favorite exercise ever was taking ballet class. When we were in the city, we lived near the 92nd Street Y, which has a nice dance program for adults. What gave me the courage to take the class was that they ran the program on a semester basis, so there was always a starting point. Prior to taking that class, I'd been chicken - there are lots of places to take class in NYC, every single day, but they run as open classes and to dive in as an adult beginner takes balls. Anyway, I took class at the Y for three or four years, once or twice a week.

Ballet is great for the body, but it's almost as terrific for the head. For an hour and a half, you're standing there trying to make your foot go in the right direction. There is no way you can think about anything else, like your mother or your crazy boss or what to have for dinner. Your foot. That's it. I used to tell people that I was taking ballet class in lieu of seeing a shrink; it was that good for the head.

Alas, I changed jobs - ironically, to work at a ballet company - and I could no longer get out of the office early enough to get to a 6:30 class. And then I had a baby, and then we left the city, and...

Yeah. No exercise, other than that hiking up and down the hill and occasional sweaty bouts of weeding.

I'm hoping this year will be different. Last summer, at the BlogHer conference, I was intrigued by the Wii Fit set-ups though I never actually tried one, because frankly it looked like a fun way to get moving without leaving the house. So I was secretly thrilled to get an email a few weeks ago from a Nintendo person, asking if I wanted to have a Wii Fit party at my house and give away a Wii Fit on the blog. Honestly, what on earth were they thinking? Do they think I run with people like Jenny The Bloggess? I wish. But I digress.

Next week, a bunch of friends and the Wii Fit ladies are descending on my little house - I'll tell you all about it afterwards. In the meantime, do you want to win a Wii Fit package – including a Wii console and Wii Fit game and balance board? Here's how:

Post a tale of fitness on your own blog – a good story, a funny one, something embarrassing – your choice. Include a link back to this post and mention that you're trying to win a Wii Fit – and how that Wii Fit is going to change your life. Come back and comment with the link to your post, because if you don't comment with your link, I won't know that you're playing. If you haven't got a blog (and why is it that you don't?), leave your exercise tale in the comments along with your heartfelt and moving description of how the Wii Fit is going to solve all of your New Year's resolutions when you win it. Whatever you do, make sure I can find your email address, because I'll need to contact you when we pick a winner! The package will be shipped from Nintendo, not from me, so I'll have to forward your name & address & phone number to them. Your post and comment deadline is 11:59 pm EST on Friday December 12. My crack team of readers will read your entry and we'll pick the most charming and genuine post that follows all the rules, resorting to a random number generator only if we get totally stymied. The winner will be announced on Monday December 15.

What are you waiting for?