Be Brilliant

Brilliant idea #1: If you must hire a babysitter to watch the tot post-daycare so that both parents can work a little later a little farther away, you may as well hire the babysitter for long enough to enjoy a nice dinner out post-working. It was such a civil evening. He picked me up from work, we spent time being social with friends in a bar (a portion of that time spent snickering at the mothers in the back rocking their strollers back and forth trying to calm their own tots, we may have even pointed and laughed at one point but didn't want to screw our karma too badly so quickly stopped), and then went on to a lovely dinner in Soho at one of our old favs. We haven't introduced Ash to Korean BBQ yet, (he has a slight fascination with candles on restaurant tables which could mean trouble in a Korean BBQ joint) so enjoying the open flames on the table was a nice treat we hadn't had for a while. Spicy spinach miso soup, table-grilled sliced rib-eye and scallops, a luscious shiraz to tie all of the flavors of spice and sweet together. Then on our way out we picked up a long espresso and headed home. Pure love.

Brilliant idea #2: Babysitter sisters. We got lucky and just fell into this one. Two of Ash's favorite teachers at school happen to be sisters, happen to really like Ash, and happen to babysit on the side outside of school and work. What does that mean for us? TWO yes TWO wonderful reliable options to contact whenever we need a sitter, TWO lovely souls who Ash adores spending time with who make it so that we can enjoy our evenings out sans worries. And he always wakes up the next morning after having been babysat by one of them asking where she is, is she downstairs, will she play more trains with him this morning, you could say he pretty much digs spending time both of them. More pure love.

Brilliant idea #3: Housekeepers. My grandmother is rolling over in her grave while my best friend is looking at me like "what took you so long?" For Valentines Day this year my husband gifted me the absolutely fabulous biweekly services of a woman named Joyce. Not only does she have the amazing powers of seeking out and zapping all of the dirt and grime that tend to accumulate in a home, but she's a member of an all girl rock band which is just icing on the personality cake. She's going to be my new best friend, and I'm sure will bring much more pure love to this journey of ours.

And last but not least, Brilliant idea #4: Airplanes. In about a month we'll be on our way to the Galapagos Islands for a few days swimming with turtles and sharks and penguins, then on to a few days in the Ecuadorian highlands to do some hiking and swinging from vines (well, maybe). This trip was originally booked with Thailand as the destination, but given the current belly situation we decided to forgo Thai beer and the temptation of endless quantities of spicy seafood (and 25 hours in transit) for Ecuadorian tea and roasted chicken and rice (and 7 hours in transit). Unfortunately due to the last minute change in booking this required pushing the trip from March to April, so we'll try to stay busy over here for another month by staring longingly at every plane that flies overhead and jumping in as many mud puddles as possible. Ash is a MASTER at that second one.

So, whether your idea of brilliance involves babysitters, romantic evenings out, girl rock band housekeepers, airplanes, or any combination of a plethora of other surely brilliant ways to pass the days, may all your days be brilliantly lived. And...

May the Irish hills caress you.
May her lakes and rivers bless you.
May the luck of the Irish enfold you.
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.
~Irish Blessing