MiPod:

In this day and age, A Big Life must include an iPod.  I was the last one in the family to get one after my teenage daughters and my husband, but since I joined the digi-music ranks this Christmas, I have become very aware of my own taste in music.  Downloading songs is a wonderful pastime and a revealing process of self awareness- a great window (ear!) into your life.  

 

Heading out on my powerwalk I hit the Shuffle Songs feature on the player, tuck the tiny speakers into my ears, and let the music unfold.  I don't read my horoscope, but I leave the random shuffle up to the stars. You never know what will come up and thanks to iPod technology our music appreciation can now segue from Mary J. Blige to the opening strains of Puccini's “La Traviata”. Each title lays a background track into this moment in my life, it takes me to the place where I first heard it and, ideally,  gets me over the hill on my walk. 

 

The first five songs on the shuffle are very revealing.  Do I dare share? Can I broadcast my most intimate taste in music AND mortify my daughters? Well, here it is: the first five songs on iPod--which I am listening to as I write this blog.  

 

Song 1 of 334:  A Case of You. Joni Mitchell. Miles of Aisles.

What a beautiful conceit. Drinking a "case" of someone you love and still being on your feet...an indulgent love metaphor. I am sentimental. I love wine.  I remember this song when it first came out; Joni at her most perfect resonance.

 

 

Song 2 of 334: How Do You Keep the Music Playing? Michel Legrand.

Movie soundtrack.  I searched Legrand (Summer of '42) and got this, too. A sappy instrumental. What movie???

 

Song 3 of 334:  Lord Thou has been our refuge: St. Paul's Cathedral Choir. The English Anthem Album. 

I grew up singing in the church choir and the sounds of English boy's voices in a vaulted cathedral is a contemplative refuge. 

 

Song 4 of 334: I Got Lost in His Arms: Shirley Horn. Album: You're my Thrill

From Annie Get Your Gun. This is a great American Standard to which this classic pair of chops lends her powerful and hesitant phrasing. "From the dark came a voice and it seemed to say, there you go..there you go..." Who hasn't been in that room???

 

(Coventry Carol: Kenny Loggins.  Hit skip on this one...HOW DO YOU SEPARATE THE CHRISTMAS SONGS ON A PLAY LIST ANYWAY??)

 

 

Song 5 of 334:  Swallowed in the Sea: Cold Play: X&Y

Finally..a song post 2000! I love his voice (whoever he is who is married to Gwenyth Paltrow) Easy lyrics and  melodic harmonies: "You cut me down to size and opened up my eyes...I could write a song a hundred miles long.." Basic, soothing pop. 

 

OK. This reads a little like the Tuesday Playlist in USA TODAY, but it's fun, don't you think? 

Will YOU SHARE YOUR first five shuffles?  As always, I want to now what's on your mind and in your ears.  It is sure to give me some great ideas for new tunes AND new observations into how we all live our Big Lives.

 

BTW.  CAN A BUSY MOM wear her iPod to the Stop & Shop?  Do you download books and language lessons or mindless pop?  I can't wait to HEAR from you.

 

Sissy BIG

Hi, Big Lifers.

 

Mom, what's for dinner?

 

Are these words a mother's most dreaded...or encouraging words?  When my teenager, Lucy asked that very question last week my first reaction (after the mental inventory of what was, indeed, for dinner) was that we had done something right.  Lucy was looking forward to dinner at home.  The family dinner table has always been a priority in our BIG LIFE.  Like most households where the mom is the primary dinner provider, when I am within a 50 mile radius of my home (which is the commuting distance to New York!), I put dinner on the table. Gathering around the table and sharing the events of the day has really been one of the most important parenting efforts we have made. The dinner table is where we share news of the day, family history--our home base for connecting with the past and planning for the future. 

 

I have been thinking a lot about the Biggers Family table recently.  I guess you could say it is a bit nostalgia driven since Lucy '08 will begin her last year at home this fall.  To be honest, I dread it and worry that the motivation to gather around the table won't be the same. Motivation is key to getting that dinner on the table and every family scenario has it challenges.  With two working parents and the over-scheduled kids finding the time to plan and execute a healthy, affordable and tasty dinner on a nightly basis is daunting.  

 

There is a wonderful book I want to bring to your attention:  The Surprising Power of Family Meals:  How Eating Together Makes Us Smarter, Stronger, Healthier and Happier, by Miriam Weinstein.  Miriam is a journalist and a filmmaker and mother of two grown girls. If you are looking for motivation to go to the trouble of putting a family dinner on the table, Miriam will show you wonderful studies to support the value of this family interaction.  Miriam and I were guests of the JM Smucker Company at their annual R&D meeting in Monterey, California this week where we presented a program to the employees on the importance of the family dinner.  We wrapped all the information into what I called, The Smuckers Family Challenge where two employees "competed" to create a family dinner out of simple ingredients.  It took me back to my days as the host of Ready, Set, Cook! on the Food Network.  While these employees were by no means master chefs, I have to say they plated some really yummy and creative dishes!

 

Before the school year slips from our grasp and the day to day routines get carried away by the summer wind, why not try to incorporate a family dinner a couple of nights a week while the light and days are at their longest. Let me know what tricks you have for getting the family to gather.  Remember, the family table will evolve as the kids get older, but it is never too soon to pull the height chair to the edge of the family table and show the tortellini toddlers the family unit.

 

 Here are some tips for making it a little easier. 

 

Sissy’s Five Points for Family Dinners:

 

·        Pick what looks GOOD. Be ready to throw-over your shopping list for the vegetables and meats that say, “Take me home…” 

·        If they build it they will come…when kids lend a hand in combining simple ingredients they have a pride and a better chance of it pleasing their palates when they get to the table.

·        How was YOUR day? – Be ready to answer that question with more than one word yourself! Or play "High/Low" and ask everyone to describe the high point and low point of their day.

·        Thursday night stretch:  Give yourself a break with breakfast for dinner. French toast or scrambled eggs do taste better @ 6PM! 

·        Invite your child’s friends (especially teens and tweens) to stay for dinner—their buddies are an excellent source of news and information.

I’m sure we’ve all experienced those overwhelming days where you just wish you had an extra pair of hands to do all that stuff you can’t get to. With so many little things to think about in our daily lives it’s always nice to be able to make things as convenient as possible. So this got me thinking, wouldn’t it be nice to have a service or support that actually did all those little unconventional tasks for you.
 I was at the dentist having my teeth cleaned and it occurred to me that I HATE to floss and I would PAY to have someone come to my house and floss my teeth a few times a week. Imagine a dental hygienist with the sensible shoes, and the uniform, and surgical mask, and latex gloves arriving and flossing your teeth in your own home???? Then I was thinking...I really can't imagine employing a housekeeper full time, but couldn't someone just show up every night at about 8PM and unload and reload the dishwasher? What about someone to just sit in the front seat of your car and change your radio so you don’t have to worry about driving off the road.

  Just think…there are so many everyday tasks I’d love to hand over to a service- especially the little things you tend to forget. Wouldn’t it be great to have someone come in just to replace the toilet paper in the bathroom? Forget ever having to deal with that person who always leaves the empty roll without replacing it! Voila, you could just hire someone to come in and change the roll whenever it was empty. How about someone to charge your cell phone? I can’t count how many times I’ve tried to call my kids, only to get their voicemail message and later find that they forgot to charge their phone so the battery died.Why not create a service for that and avoid playing phone tag! Or better yet what if you could just hire someone to make all those phone calls for you...Now that’s living a BIG life!

 Even if it may sound ridiculous, think about how nice it would be not to have to worry about all those little things after a long day. So what kind of services would you be willing to pay someone to do for you? Write me your ideas. The possibilities are endless!