An Urban Girl

A break must be taken from regular blogging for a moment of gratitude for Sex and the City 2. A s a special treat, Mr. Urban took me to see it this morning at 10:00 am. Don’t laugh, it’s the only time we had childcare. A nd I loved it! Every 147 minutes of it! Every shot was beautifully taken. The locations, the clothes, the girls, the boys, the jewelry were all fantastic… and the story was funny and GOOD. I was bummed out last week when the reviews were less than perfect. Especially from my sister who had gone to a premiere of the movie in Vancouver last Wednesday night, and had a need to call me at 7:00 am on Thursday to talk about it - despite my specific instructions not to call me until I had seen the movie. No matter how tightly I was holding my ears and how loudly I was repeating “I don’t want to know”, I still managed to hear her pooh-poohing it. Once again, Miranda snatching up all the great looks from the other girls. A s I told Mr. Urban in the car, when

E ight years ago, my sweetheart really sold me hard on this place called Silicon Valley .  “It is to innovation and technology, what Florence was to Renaissance” he said one night over a glass of wine.  He also bribed me with unlimited access to his lovely face in exchange for moving away from my fabulous city, beloved family and friends….  I mean how could I have resisted all this romance? I waltzed in, just hoping to find a small little nook for us to begin our life together.  Somewhere clean, of course, but also with a little culture and some personality.  Some place where I could start walking around and gaining my bearings in my new life.   The middle of nowhere W ell.  All we could find, during those prosperous days of Silicon Valley, was an apartment complex practically right on Highway 101, in the “Heart of Silicon Valley” (which meant in the middle of nowhere as far as I was concerned).  You couldn’t walk anywhere without falling right into the southbound lanes of the h

 S aturday was my day to recharge my spirit. I was woken up early by that sweet Mr. Urban and “encouraged” to get a head start on my special day so I can relax and not feel rushed. The retreat was held at the Mercy Center . I was lucky that my drive was short, only 20 minutes (some had driven hours that morning to make the event). T he second I crossed an ordinary looking parking lot at the entrance of the property and headed down a narrow stone walled pathway, I knew that I was in for a treat. Mercy Center, I learned, is a retreat center on the beautiful grounds of a convent belonging to the Sisters of Mercy in Burlingame, CA. Once you are there, you don’t need to check their website to know that they welcome all people, no matter their faith or cultural background, to nourish themselves. T he retreat was hosted by Karen Maezen Miller and attended by Mothers from all over the Bay Area and beyond. I was reminded to let go of the expectations my mind imposes on this wo

Pour Moi T his Saturday I am attending a retreat at a beautiful place.  My very first one!  Last year, at the height of sleep deprivation and dealing with what turned out to be an extra long bout of painful colic for my little one, I serendipitously attended a heartfelt and hilarious talk by Karen Maezen Miller , a Zen Buddhist Priest and the author of Momma Zen.    Karen is hosting a day of spiritual refreshment here in the Bay Area.   Please stay tuned, I am so excited to attend and report back on my day… Pour Petit M y girl finally received the package she was waiting for.  Her very first helmet arrived from Amazon, with pink bunnies and all…  She is proud, and life could not be any better! Pour Mon Cheri T his Saturday Mr. Urban will have our little girl all to himself.  He is excited and is thinking of a fun father-daughter itinerary for the two of them.  (I can foresee a Maiden Bike Voyage taking place in the near future since they now have all their equipment in orde

W e had yet another fabulously overcast day in Northern California. So we thought it was the perfect opportunity to have a quiet lunch on the patio – just us girls. W e made a special trip to Trader Joe’s, where we grabbed some fresh tomatoes, organic Persian cucumbers, a ripe delicious avocado, limes and organic tortilla chips. We also picked up some awesome FRESH Salsa – another great reason to love living in California, where the Fresh salsa makers flock to, and send their witty salsa salesmen to places like Whole Foods on weekends and holidays to sell you on their brand of Fresh Salsa Goodness …. A nyways, we listened to girly French music , took in the lovely aroma of our blooming jasmines, and had a tantalizing conversation about birds, dogs, and in fact all domestic animals. We also paused to admire our beautiful lavender plants that are coming along just so nicely.  It was refreshing and relaxing. A lunch where one needn’t worry about tomato juice dribbling do

It happened today.   There was the aroma of coffee in the air… even classical music playing in the background… a gentle touch and two little lovely words were uttered… It was a long and busy day, infused with more than the usual amount of activities (and patience).  You see, the UrbanBaby is suffering once again from teething pains.    We made an extra special visit to Gymboree.  Browsed the children's section at Kepler's .   Fed the birdies outside of Borrone .  We registered for a summer swim class at our favorite pool (YAY!! We have been on the DARN waiting list for 3 months) and watched the babies play in the pool.. .  We sipped water out of 5 different sippy cups.  We bobbled our heads to “Our” favorite new song by Googoosh more times that I care to count… We made 4 different lunches until we found one we liked – sort of.    And since the two of us were nearly exhausted, we enlisted the help of my lovely Mr. Urban the second he stepped into the door.  We asked,

It’s funny how things work. I woke up to a cool and somewhat overcast beautiful spring morning in Los Altos. But as soon as I looked out into our French village inspired courtyard, I found myself back in another village, worlds away, on a spring day much like this. When I was little, living in Tehran, like most other Tehranies, Fridays during the warmer months were about taking refuge “Birooneh Shahr” (Outside the City). Mostly it was in the cooler and greener Alborz mountains. And always accompanied by at least a dozen cousins, aunts and uncles of all shapes and sizes. My aunt and uncle had a property in Sangan Village . Not too long of a drive northwest of Tehran, in the central Alborz mountains' protected area. We would park the envoy of cars at the end of the road. Everyone would grab as much of the gear as they could: pots of food, rugs, backgammon, playing cards, the kids and the elderly. And then we would slide/walk down a very steep and unpaved hill. At the bot

As Mr. Urban and I watched It’s Complicated on DVD last night, I planned a weekend trip to Santa Barbara , in my head. Mainly our trip included activities centering around the Bakery which was used as a location in the movie, as well as very short walks on the beach. I just sat down to finalize our weekend getaway and what do I find? The Bakery was staged! It doesn’t actually exist! Another one of my fantasies bites the dust. If you haven’t already, watch the movie. Like all Nancy Meyers' films, it will not disappoint… and there is also the lovely Meryl Streep, who I think I am in love with, just a little.

"Every Object, Every Being is a Jar Full of Delight" Rumi It’s been busy busy around here. Last Sunday with the help of some lovely ladies, we celebrated the coming of a new baby girl. Nothing seems more elegant than cupcakes, pretty dresses, a glowing mama to be, and touches of pink everywhere.... The next day, Mr. Urban left us for a week in Washington, D.C. My dad arrived the same day for a week with the Urban girls... We had a grand time drinking coffee at the best cafes around us, eating (not at home of course), shopping, chit chatting and laughing at all the things the Urban Baby said and did (some of which we shouldn't really have been laughing at). She was hugged and kissed to the brink of suffocation by grandpa, just for her to ask for "More". I got some lessons in gardening and we planted two new pots of beautiful baby lavenders. I have always wanted those! He even accompanied us to the shops so I can get new summery accessories for our living room, wh