Today was my Grandma Lillian’s official 96th birthday.  Tanty, which we call her affectionately,  is still recovering from being in the hospital, so we kept her celebration simple–just cake and ice cream.  She was in good spirits as always.  I love her warm smile and gentle voice.  We enjoyed spending the day with our favorite old gal.  I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful Grandma.  Happy 96th Birthday, Tanty! We love you!!!

Arman & Arshad's First Fencing Lesson

My two boys just had their first fencing lesson today.  Arshad, my older son, has been begging for lessons for the past three years, but I was reluctant to sign him up.  Although competitors wear protective gear, I still had fears about letting my sons learn the sport.  It seemed way too dangerous.  So I wanted to wait until my boys were mature enough to follow all safety instructions.  Both Arshad and Arman were so thrilled today to have their first lesson.   They have been practicing lunges and jousts for years using swords made of Legos, cardboard, and foil paper.  It was truly a dream come true.  They can’t wait until their next lesson.  I guess “En Garde!” will be their new catch phrase.

Yesterday when I heard the not guilty verdict for Casey Anthony, I sent out this tweet: Casey Anthony’s verdict- no words.  Shocked, Outraged, Saddened- The 3GB Team.

Today I am still speechless.  What does this verdict say about our society.  This is beyond a miscarriage of justice.  A two year old girl was murdered, and our justice system seems to be saying that it is okay to kill your own child.  How absurd?  Children are not property, nor are they disposable.  Their lives are as valuable as yours and mine.  Our legal system has always promoted the opposite.  The value of a child’s life has always been seen as less.  I guess if you’re not making a monetary contribution to society, you are seen as subhuman.  Those who think this way should be ashamed.

This case reminds me of the JonBonet Ramsey case.  They are eerily similar.  In both cases, a young girl was murdered by a family member and no one was held accountable despite of the overwhelming evidence.  It’s mind boggling.  The legal standard in these cases was “guilty beyond a reasonable doubt,” not “guilty beyond all doubt.”

After the verdict was handed down yesterday, Anthony’s defense attorney blasted the media for “a media assassination.”  This is the only valid argument that this defense team has made in reference to the Anthony trial.  I couldn’t agree more that the media attention damaged the state’s case.  In fact, the prosecution is to blame for this not guilty debacle.  The state allowed the media circus that we all witnessed.  I never heard the prosecution call for a closed trial.  Instead they allowed people to line up and even brawl to get into the court room.  It seemed from day one that this trial was not about Kaylee, the victim.  It was about the prosecution and defense team trying to make a big name for themselves.  They are all no different from Casey Anthony.

Casey Anthony will likely be released tomorrow, move on, sign multiple book deals, get paid for interviews, and benefit from other lucrative offers.  Her daughter’s murder will go unsolved.  If this is American justice, then I am ashamed to call myself an American.  It seems that our obsession and love affair as a society with sex, lies, and videotape is played out not only on reality TV but also in our court rooms.  God help us!

We’re doing things a little differently this year.  Instead of celebrating at home, we’re going into the city.   First, we’ll visit my grandma, Tanty, who is in the hospital, and then we will be off to celebrate the 4th of July with my sister and her family at Coney Island.  I love that place.  Too bad we will be too late for the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.  Anyway, all of the kids and adults are looking forward to competing in bumper cars and catching a glimpse of the crazy, outrageous characters on the beach.  There are always so many outlandish people out on any given day, so I could only imagine what today is going to bring.  Later, we’ll catch some fireworks with my friend Karen and her clan.  I’m looking forward to breaking my holiday tradition.   It’s fun to shake things up every once in a while.   Have a safe and happy 4th!

Yesterday, we took Zaharah to her new orthodontist for a consultation.   We have known for some time that she would be needing braces, but choosing a doctor was more difficult than we had initially thought.  We consulted with two other orthodontists before we settled on Dr. Magoulas, and each time something just didn’t seem right.  Although both of the previous dentists had wonderful reputations, they seemed impersonal.  One doctor even had several patients lined up at the same time in a room.  I wanted someone who would be more attentive and have time to explain and answer any of our questions.  Dr. Magoulas exceeded my expectations.

Dr. Magoulas came highly recommended by one of Zaharah’s close friends, whom he has been treating for about one year.  Between that and reading his bio on his website, I must admit that I was pretty much sold even before the appointment.  Dr. Magoulas is a graduate of my alma mater, and (talk about six degrees of separation!) it turns out that he graduated from dental school with one of my close friends.  He also happens to write poetry (so he already had something in common with Zaharah) and was a member of the crew team in college.  My first thought was that since he writes poetry he must be a caring, sensitive dentist.  My second thought was that he is probably cute.  I never met a guy in crew who wasn’t.  Funny thing is that Zaharah was only concerned about the amenities at Dr. Magoulas’s office.  The office is equipped with an arcade that doesn’t require tokens, a play room, and a giant wheel to spin and get free prizes.   Zaharah was in heaven and so were her brothers, who are now claiming to need orthodontic work themselves, pointing out overbites and other tooth defects.  It was quite comical.  In the end, Zaharah and I are both happy to have Dr. Magoulas.  For such a big mouth girl, it is ironic that her mouth is crowded. L.O.L.

Last night, I got an urgent call from my Aunt Venus.  She told me that my Grandma Lillian, whom I affectionately call Tanty, was ill and that she was taking her to the emergency room.  Tanty will be 96 in two weeks, and we planned to celebrate her birthday at my sister’s house in Connecticut this weekend.  We figured that a three-day weekend would be the perfect opportunity to get everyone together.  We never expected things to turn out the way it has.  In fact, Tanty just visited me earlier this week, and she was in her usual good spirits.  I cannot recall a day when she wasn’t smiling and filled with kind words.  I truly feel blessed to have her in my life.  When I was growing up, Tanty lived with my family, and she even spent six years with me before I moved to New Jersey.  She wasn’t interested in moving to the Garden State; it was too much of a big change for her.   My children, husband, and I are so attached to our favorite old girl.  I know that she is not getting younger, but I’m not prepared to lose her.  I’m not much of a crier, but I cried a lot Wednesday night.  The thought of her being in pain and discomfort broke my heart.  I always dreamed that she would pass away in her sleep.  She deserves that and so much more for the love and kindness that she has given us throughout the years.  Today, my old gal is hanging on, smiling, and, hopefully, getting better.  Tanty, we love you!!!

As a liberal and a Constitutionalist, I am proud of my home state New York in its recent ruling permitting same sex marriages.  I believe firmly in the separation of church and state.  My personal religious beliefs will never get in the way of my fundamental belief in our Constitution.  I don’t understand why everyone expects my religious convictions to trump my political beliefs.  To me, they are and should always remain separate.  To say that I uphold the right of gay and transgender people to marry should not be perceived as an affront to my Christian beliefs.  Jesus came to liberate all of mankind, not to judge.  That doesn’t mean that we have to personally advocate for same sex marriage, but who gives us the right to deny it?  Yes, I know the Biblical argument that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, so God does not condone gay relations.  But we must keep in mind that God brought about the destruction, man did not.  Let God be the judge of what’s right and wrong.  Remember that Christ said,  “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone…” John 8:7.   As a society, let’s leave judgment up to God and let’s uphold the laws of our nation, which were intended by our Founding Fathers to allow all men the rights to freedom, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

My children can never disappoint me.  As long as they are respectful and tolerant members of society, I’ll always be proud of them no matter what.  But yesterday was one of those days that made me feel terrific to be a mom.  Both Zaharah and Arman had recitals.  Not only did they perform beautifully, but they were both poised and confident as they took center stage.

Arman always complains about practicing, but he never sounded better on the piano.  He was very proud of himself for all the hard work that he put in.  Not to mention, I think he is happy that he will be taking a break from his formal training over the summer.  He’ll keep practicing at home and just enjoy being a 6 year old boy.

Zaharah played two pieces on the piano and had a solo vocal performance.  I knew that she was ready for the piano, but I was a little concerned about the vocals.  She was hoarse earlier this week, so she didn’t practice at all.  Her vocals were outstanding.  I’m not just saying that because she is my special ZZbug: Zaharah really has talent.  I can’t believe that I had denied her vocal lessons for so long.  I’m even seriously contemplating giving her acting and dance lessons.  She has proven to us that she is serious about pursuing a career in the arts, all while she maintains her excellent grades in school.  I think it is time for us to let our little butterfly soar.  We have given Zaharah all the right tools, and with our love and guidance, the sky is the limit for our little stagestruck starlet.

My husband and I always allow the kids to have free reign for their first week out of school during the summer.  There are no real bed time rules or structure to our children’s day.  They can play and just enjoy themselves.  We both believe that they deserve to be rewarded for all of their hard work.  But I wanted to share a funny story about our mouse at play.

Yesterday, I told all of the kids to go up to their rooms and go to bed at around 11:00 p..m. because Zaharah and Arman had a recital the following day.  They all went to their rooms, but then Arman came down a short while later and lay next to me on the couch.  He had trouble sleeping.

My husband and I fell asleep watching a movie, and we woke up around 3:30 a.m.  When Malik picked up sleeping Arman and walked to the stairs, he noticed the lights in my son Arshad’s room were still on.  Malik also could tell that Arshad’s computer was still on.  As he started up the stairs, he heard Arshad quickly close his computer, shut off his lights, and jump into his bed.  He obviously hadn’t gone to bed and had been playing video games the entire time.  Not wanting to give Arshad the personal satisfaction that we were onto him, Malik walked by Arshad’s room and put Arman in his bed.  Soon Arshad emerged from his bed, rubbing his eyes and speaking in a slow, sleepy voice, “Daddy, Daddy? Can I have some water?”  My husband answered, “Sure, you can get it yourself.  Just pretend that you weren’t sleeping and that you were playing Pokemon on the computer the whole time.”  Arshad made a sad attempt at coming across confused, asking, “What? What do you mean?” as he walked down the stairs.  When Arshad came back to his room, Malik asked, “So what time did you go to sleep?”  “I don’t know. I have no idea. I just fell asleep,” Arshad replied.  “You don’t have ANY idea? Was it 12? Was it 1?” “I think it was 11.” “Really? ‘Cause at 11, you were playing the Wii downstairs.  So what time did you go to bed? Was it 3:30?” Malik asked.  “O.k. fine, Dad, you got me,” Arshad said sheepishly.

Arshad loves to stay awake super late.  He can stay up literally all night reading a book, playing video games, or watching TV.  We’ll have to worry about him at college.  He definitely has a party animal spirit.

Summer vacation is finally here, and we’re taking it slow.  The kids and I have had two consecutive pajama days this week.  It felt great not to have to get ready and rush off to school or activities.   The boys have especially enjoyed countless hours of playing the Nintendo DS.  Next week I’ll have to reintroduce some structure.  The kids will begin working on their summer reading lists and brush up on their math skills.  I’ll also plan some movie and play dates.  But for now, we’re all enjoying our ride on easy street.  Talk to you soon!