Disneyland sucks!

ok, well not really. However, going there last night reminded me why (for now) Legoland is soooo much better.
reason #1; if you have an annual pass, you have to park twelve million miles away and take a tram into the park. At least nowadays I'm not dragging a stroller along, but it's still a pain.
reason #2: It's really crowded. yeah, I know-DUH! Usually we go in the mornings where it's just us and the other crazy people that get there at 7:30. When you go at night, however, there are twelve million people. These people include teenagers who dart in front of your children, laughing hysterically and not watching where they are going, holdout grown-ups dragging passed out children around in their triple-wide strollers and gigantic white people from the midwest blocking the walkways.
reason #3: as I mentioned last night, idiot adults get on the kid stuff (like the ropes adventure) and trample the little kids. Nobody tramples my kids at the Legoland ropes course. Why? Because it is specifically designed for kids and even if you DID try and trample my kid, a horde of angry parents would shame you into growing the F*** up! Seriously, last night this grown man and his wife were grabbing the sides of a bridge, bouncing up and down and screaming at the top of their lungs. and yes, it was still daylight. and yes, they saw that my kid and other kids behind them were freaking out at the apparently insane behavior of grown ups. and they didn't care. and it was still daylight. people are stupid.
reason #4:as Stephanie mentioned earlier this week, even the usually chipper staff was a bit surly last night. Last year when Chiara went for her birthday, EVERYONE wished her a happy birthday and did so with a genuine (or at least genuinely faked) smile. This year, it was more forced, some people forgot and some people just apparently didn't care. What happened to the Disney "magic"? If I am going to pay a ton of money for an annual pass, in the middle of the Great Recession, people had better be nice to me!! Or at least be nice to my little girl. I know she LOOKS like she's a jaded 9 year old, but she's still barely 7 and these things matter to her.

Of course there are still things that disneyland does spectacularly well. That Aladdin show is amazing. The fireworks show and how they choreograph it with the music and story is so creative. The "Soaring Over California" ride was incredibly realistic. However, these good things do not outweigh the many annoyances of Disneyland. We'll probably be back when the kids are older, but for now? Good riddance Disneyland! Hello Legoland!

little girls magazines?

I saw a cool magazine this week at school that was all about girls/women and sports. There were women of all shapes and sizes, with mercifully few ads for beauty products. I thought to myself, "wow! I wonder if there is a magazine like this for little girls?" It would be better if this magazine didn't accept advertising, even if it was more expensive per issue.
So far, I can't find anything.
I am trying, as much as possible, to limit the insidious influence of advertising (beauty products etc) on her life. I don't want her to grow up and become part of the hyper=sexualized media campaign of Miley Cyrus and the like. I want her to enjoy being a little girl, be comfortable with her body and see some positive role models.
Is there anything out there? and if there isn't, will I have to create it??

Mother's Day

You know you are married to a chef when the very THOUGHT of Mother's Day fills you with dread. Even if you ARE a mother yourself.
Of course you wouldn't dare expect Chef to cook for you and your mom because he will be HIDEOUSLY busy and stressed out. You also won't go to any other restaurant because you know THEIR chefs and wait staff will also be busy and stressed out. So you will probably stay home and make pizza for the kids.