A Shakespeare Wench

Moving...

2009-09-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

It's 5770 - Happy New Year!

I was going to wait till the the other new year 2010 to try blogging exclusively on my new site. But I going for it now.

Check us out at: www.oururbanvillage.com

(thanks to my brother Charlie for all the design work! I'd be lost without his help.)

Photo Fun

2009-09-07T17:13:00.001-07:00

Some pictures from the past 5 months that are fun. I have more that I like, but now I'm starting to get stressed out about grad school!!!!

11 Months

2009-09-07T17:03:00.001-07:00

He likes to chew it chew it!!!

Sweet Eli turned 11 months this past week. He still has the most mellow disposition which is so calm 90% of the time. He can take a toy and just play. It's nice.

11 month highlights -

- eating only table food. He's done with jarred baby food, it's boring and tasteless. He eats way too much off the floor.

-taking an interest in the baby walker, just the weekend, after a visit with at his cousin Mave's and playing with his walker.

-saying "mama" finally! But still don't think he knows that is me. I do think he knows what a "baba" is, his bottle.

-crawling on all fours and moved on from the military crawl.

-pulling all toys off of shelves.

-drinking whole milk.

-went to the beach for the first time, did not getting in the water because it was raining.

One more month till the big dual party with his cousin Mave - should be the blowout extravaganza of the year!!!! Tractor tipping here we come!

Pronoun Confusion

2009-08-24T17:09:00.001-07:00

"I'm a boy!!! I don't have a ponytail!"

When Kyle asked Noah if he was a she because he was using the pronoun when referring to himself.

Just his world of how boys and girls are different.

Good Meal

2009-08-19T18:04:00.000-07:00

We had a good meal last week when Mariana, Jesse, and Maverick. I have been on the lookout recently for good family style menus.

The meal was:
-chile/lime marinated chicken from Central Market
-Green Goddess rice (w/o the basil)
-Ina's garlic cibatta bread from Back to the Basics cookbook.
-lots of fresh fruit.

The recipes were slightly altered with a few ingredients left out just because they didn't seem necessary or we didn't have them. It was easy, yet might tasty. That one's a keeper.

Alter Egos

2009-08-16T20:10:00.000-07:00

(Just another day at our crib)

He is Thomas the tender engine ice cream man. His alter ego is a train that sells ice cream in between the fold of his chalk/magnet board. The ice cream flavors come in broccoli, sometime broccoli mint, often the ice cream store is out of chocolate....bummer!!!

I finished The Help. Excellent read! I read like a mad woman, mostly to meet my book club deadline. I think I missed number. This is actually my 19th book. I have joined many Goodreads online book clubs, plus I'm keeping up my out for local face to face book clubs.

Now, what will we do with both boys home for a week. Time to think of some fun things to do....

Apps for everything

2009-08-06T20:47:00.001-07:00

I found a New Year's countdown app for my phone. There are 147 days until 2010, I got this blog challenging under wraps. Maybe my new blog will be ready and I can start a 2010 challenge.

Speaking of challenges, I just finished my 19th book of this year People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks. I gave it four stars, it lost a star for some cheesy dialog. It was an interesting take on the Jewish persecution in relation to a historical written work. I was inspired to read more Jewish history, so when I have time I'll research that. My book challenge is to read 50 books this year. The year is half done, but I'm not half read. Time to read some young adult books to beef up my list and make me self look more read.

3 year old have strange logic (um-no logic). Today Noah said, "When I yawn, it just means I'm thirsty." I tried to inform him that it means he is TIRED!!!!! No such luck. Just thristy. Oh and he heard Kyle say crook, and now he keeps asking "Am I crook?" or "Are crooks giants?" or after throwing his shirt "Was that a crook?"

Word of the day: crook (pee-wee scream AAAHHHHH!!!!!)

Carry on...

Waiting...

2009-08-03T19:55:00.000-07:00

(Help!!!)

I was going to switch over to a new blog when we moved. But it's still under construction. No reason to wait to write thou. Have been busy with school, kids, mess, still not unpacked, never ending activity...I do choose to keep busy so I shouldn't complain. But I do.

Thoughts on the mind currently:

-thinking about getting dog. Again. Might not be a good idea. But I'm wrapping my mind around it.
-lots to do this week.
-stupid final for one class due this weekend.
-I want summer school to be over!!!!
-how am I going to fit exercise in the next two weeks?
-how can I make the afternoons more fun for the kids, even thou it is hot?

That's all. Maybe more deep thoughts. later.

Tomorrow is cruise night. If only it were a real cruise and not a trek to the local JCC pool. A cruise would be great.

Eli turned 10 months yesterday!

Life is too much...

2009-05-06T19:53:00.000-07:00

sometimes. We just have sooo much going on. And I really want our house unpacked because Noah is getting into everything!!! and making even bigger messes.

Oh well.

I'm mostly just tired when I sit down. And even more tired when I have to do school work.

Getting Noah out of the house these days has been a challenge. He isn't as agreeable to go to the park. I have to beg him to please go to the park. Or tell him that Eli and I are going - doesn't he?

In the end, he has fun.

Ay caramba!

Last Shabbat in A-town house

2009-04-24T17:40:00.001-07:00

I was a little sad about our last Shabbat in A-town. It has been good to us. I am excited at the possibility, I'll miss our first home together as a family.

Packers will be here on Sunday, we'll load up on Monday, go say good-bye to Noah's teachers and friends at school, and then we'll start our life in a new town. Sounds so easy when it's put that way.

Photobucket

2009-04-24T17:29:00.000-07:00

Trying out this photobucket slideshow stuff. Seems like a lot of steps, but maybe it might be fun???

Here are some photos from my Aunt's Easter Brunch.

*update: well that wasn't too hard!!!

Old Smokey

2009-04-22T07:33:00.001-07:00

Kyle comforting Noah, he woke up scared and without pants.

Our rolled car and fire and police crew.

Last night, our car rolled across the street, on to the neighbors lawn, and hit the electric box. We were just minutes from going to bed when we heard a loud crash, waited a few seconds, then our power went out.

I didn't want Kyle to go outside to see what happened, because our neighborhood is wacked at night. But he did, and we saw our car across the street with a small fire under it because it hit the electric box. OMG!!!

So yes, we did call 911, and all the appropriate people came to the rescue. Everything ended up being okay, except our car's bumper. We're hoping insurance will fix that.

Still we were all wake until about 2 am, because the electric man didn't bring the right tool to turn off the electric box. We waited because we had to move our car.

I'm suspicious as to what happened. We've live here three years and the car has never rolled. It had been parked in the drive way since about 4 in the afternoon. How does it suddenly roll at midnight? The passenger side door was open. I don't think I left it open. All very fishy.

I want a car with automatic locks. A similar unfortunate car incident occurred when we last moved. Kyle got the UHaul stuck in the street - remember that?

Too much drama, not enough sleep last night.

Passover Fun

2009-04-09T19:36:00.000-07:00

Noah and Jacob sipping their "wine" (sparkling grape juice) with spoons and relaxing on pillows.

(Eli's first Passover)

Turbulent times, are not no more. All is good, and we are on track to move as planned. Kyle, thankfully, still has his job lined up, and we are counting ourselves lucky and blessed.

We did our very first seder with our friends the Smiley's yesterday.

(That's Sean and his sister. His wife took the picture.)

We had so much fun and it was just what we needed for the kids. They tried to follow a long, but mostly sat there and sipped there juice with their spoons.
(Playing during the seder.)

The food was yummy. We made this new vegetable kugel which was very tasty, I want to make it again just because. There was also a good brisket, matzoh ball soup, passover chocolate chip cookies, and lots of wine. We also made Tispisti, a dessert made with almond meal and imbibed with sweet homemade syrup.

I don't think Noah and his friend Jacob ate, they were to busy chatting with each other and running around enjoying each others company. They did have fun looking for the afikoman, and kept saying, "Here's the afikoman!" holding up an invisible piece. When they did find it, they were rewarded with froggy treats.

I made afikoman covers. I think I should try to sell some next year. They were easy to make, and could be personalized or used for a passover craft.

It was a great start to the passover season, and I feel pumped, armed with kosher for passover recipes and a pantry filled with matzah. Still have one more family seder to go to on the last night.

Chag Sameach! (Happy Passover!)

6 months

2009-04-05T20:08:00.000-07:00

Eli turned 6 months amongst some turbulent times.

He has two teeth coming in on the bottom and a great big head. Those are the highlights this month. His head has a circumference of 18.5 inches, and the nurse kindly charted this, showing me how it was well beyond the highest percentile. Folks, he has a great big head.

He's also:
-eating more solid foods
-sitting up a little better
-sleeping in the crib (YAY!)
-getting better at nap time
-smiles like crazy

He's got the best temperament, very chill, likes to really explore his toys. He also loves his big brother and loves to laugh with him. Sweet, sweet boy!

Turbulent times can be discussed later. I've been talking about them so much, I'm sick of thinking about what's recently hit the fan.

Boy Bits

2009-03-21T11:56:00.000-07:00

Head lock!

Noah's been loving bouncing Eli in the saucer.

Noah -
We are trying to create a series of steps for Noah to help him going to sleep. He does not have the easiest time relaxing and enjoying sleep. His steps are:
1. Turn you lights off.
2. Get in your bed.
3. Put your head on your pillow.
4. Close your eyes.
5. Go to sleep.
6. BE VERY QUIET! (which he usually yells during naptime)

The steps seem to be working and give him some system, similar to sheep counting, for going to sleep. If we stick with it he might just get it. We have a star chart so that he gets a star every morning when he wakes up. Once his whole chart is filled up he get's a Chuck E. Cheese reward.

My other favorite game he has been playing is called "Let's be bunnies." I told him that bunnies talk very quietly and whisper. We have been playing this game when Eli is sleeping or when things get to rowdy. I love this game!

Eli-
There's a tooth about to pop from the bottom gums. I can feel it, and he certainly has been very irritable. Could also be irritable from getting off schedule this past week with our traveling.

He has been doing some rolling from tummy to back, but not consistently.

I'm am enjoying hearing both boys in the backseat of the car laughing and cutting up together. Noah laughs, Eli smiles or laughs back. It's cute.

Texas Railroad

2009-03-21T11:47:00.001-07:00

Train watching.

Relaxing on the train ride to Rusk.

We rode the diesel train to Rusk from Palestine last week. We thought it was going to be the steam train, but apparently they switch trains every month. We'll check on that next time we go.

It was a relaxing hour and a half train ride through the country side. Eli slept and Noah watched out the window. One woman even commented on how well behaved Noah was and how luck we were. He's tricksy that way.

The train has a concession stand so we ate some popcorn. And there is a hour or so layover in Rusk. We could have planned better for that as well. Apparently we could have pre-ordered our food, which we didn't, so we were left to eat hotdogs and expired lemonade. Next time we'll take our own food or preorder so that we can check out the train stop a little more. Most of our time was spent in line, which just isn't fun.

Then we went back to Palestine. Another hour and a half drive. We did pass the steam train on the way there and on the way back. It was a fun trip and definitely one we'd like to do again. Thou, we might consider different lodging. The hotel we stayed in was strange, it was more like a poorly designed apartment. It was fine, but Palestine is sketchy. I felt less safe there than in Houston. There was also a lot of in door smoking, something else I am no longer used to.

I'm becoming such a city slicker.

New Home

2009-03-20T19:18:00.000-07:00

Foot injury.

Houston cousins munching down on some brownies.

After a grueling week of looking at houses, losing houses we liked, and then waffling between the final house decision, we did indeed find a house. Between two visits, we looked at about 30 or so different places to live in. This house is not perfect, but it has potential. It's a 1950s ranch house with a swimming pool. The pool will be the first thing we need to manage. We'll need to put up some sort of fence to keep the little ones out.

The neighborhood has a park and things for the kids to do. Which was what ultimately helped guide our decision in this direction. I wanted a neighborhood that was active and lively with kids. This place was very active when we drove around it.

It is done and decided. Now we need to pack and get over there. Our cousins there were very helpful. Maureen cooked us dinner twice and watched Noah one day so we could look at house. I don't know how to repay people who are so kind to us. I hope to pay it forward someday.

There was some stress, some relief, and the B and B we stayed in was great. Only one minor injury. Noah fell off the bed playing Nana Dinosaur with Mary and Catherine. They technically had permission because we weren't clear what Catherine was saying about their game. Sooooo...he's all better now. Must have landed funny and maybe he'll learn a lesson about the woes of jumping on the bed.

Anyone need a house to rent in Austin?

Go Fish

2009-03-13T18:23:00.000-07:00

Making matches.

Tonight we taught Noah how to play Go Fish. We had to be very detailed with the directions but on his level. It was very successful and he had a lot of fun playing. We did have to play with all the cards showing for the first time. We were also explaining to him how he should ask for cards to match and what that would sound like. It was fun, and I could see his wheels turning and wrapping around the game. I think we'll be playing like this for a while.

I wonder at one point kids become competitive. We aren't pushing that, it's all friendly and helping each other when we take someone else's cards. Thus far, he doesn't have a distinction between winning and losing.

I was trying to remember when I learned Go Fish. I don't remember. It's just there in the brain. It's so neat to see him learning.

Last Music Class With Our Favorite Teacher

2009-03-12T19:29:00.000-07:00

The closest Noah would get for the picture.

Music class action shot.

Today was we had our last music class with Walter. Noah has been doing Music Together with him for two years.

We decided not to sign up for the spring session because we will be gone for half of it but still have to pay full price....blardee blardee.

Hope we can find a good class when we move.

Bagel Fest

2009-03-08T19:36:00.001-07:00

Runnin' the race.

Race Ribbon

Noah completed his first kids 1k today. We weren't sure if we should have gone or not because we woke up at 7:05 and the race was at 8:00. Luckily we got our act together in about 20 minutes and made it - sorta.

I say sorta because when we got there he had to go potty and I had to stand in the organized chaos line to pick up his run number. So while we were pinning on his race number the kids buzzer went off, and well we were about 5 minutes behind all the kids.

Noah was the last runner. This might have worked in his favor because everyone made a big deal about "the last kid runner." They race coordinators were talking on the walk-e-talkies to start cheering for Noah and make a big deal. He got many cheers as we were coming down the home stretch, which seemed to pump him up. I should have brought my video camera. I was laughing because of the amount of attention we were getting for coming in last place. How often does that happen?

Anyways, I hope he keeps running, and making him the super star who finishes last place is good motivation to keep him running. He got a ribbon too.

The HEB buddy shopping bag might have been faster than us, but that's no matter! Gotta start somewhere.

Swim Class Break

2009-03-04T12:41:00.000-08:00

Today we went to Tom's Swim and Dive to get our money back for swim classes. It's just not a happy situation for anyone anymore, so we best take a break. I'm also really unhappy with the new teacher, she didn't even try to help. The place has not be jiving with Noah since Ms. Nikki left.

We are at that point were it is time for Noah to start swimming on his own, but he's not quite accepted the idea yet. We'll start again, maybe, when we move. In the meantime, Kyle plans to give him swim lessons to keep him swimming.

Rocketship

2009-03-02T19:16:00.001-08:00

Rocketship to the moon. Retrieved edible moon pieces.

Today, when Noah was walking out of school, he saw a girl with a rocketship walking out of another class. He kept talking about wanting to make a rocketship. So we went home and made ourselves a rocketship. He did a lot of the work.

I like when the world inspires us to do something fun and make it work (as Tim Gunn would say). I've really been wanting to do some art, crafty thing with all our recycleables. Not sure what.

I think when we move I'm going to switch to Vox for blogging. It has more features that I am looking for in a blog. I still am not sure how to add video here. I'm not doing the switch till we move though. Finishing out our journey here first. Ahh, what a journey it's been, one I'm not looking forward to leaving.

5 months

2009-03-02T19:03:00.001-08:00

5 months old

Happy 5 months Eli!

He's a good sleeper - in his swing. We tried to move him to the crib again. Again, we were not successful. He gets soooo upset. So he's back in his swing. We'll try again later. Sleep is hard to come by around here, and why try to force him to have horrible sleep patterns?

5 month highlights -
-still does not like baths
-likes toys Noah wasn't that into - like one with dangly ribbons and stuff.
-like being upright - loves his exersaucer
-eating solid food slowly
-smiles lots
-super sound sensitive, and gets really upset with loud noises, takes a while to calm back down
-already encouraging Noah's silliness, by smiling and laughing - for instance when Noah decide to get stuck in his chair at dinner - smiled a lot
-likes movement
-super sweet and cuddly
-always wakes up in the morning with a big smile.

He's growing up so fast! Hopefully next month he can start swim lessons.

Indian Food

2009-03-01T21:07:00.000-08:00

Coloring at Torah tots

Noah loved the Chicken Tikka Masala yesterday. I'm happy that he likes a variety of foods. Probably gets that from both of us. We are foodies. It hasn't been easy to be foodies, with two kiddies around now. Frozen pizza, hot dogs, something crock-pot, pretty bland. I'm not the domesticated goddess I'd like to be. It is good to know that we can just buy the tikka sauce from Masala Wok and use this with left over chicken.

We had a good weekend. Torah tots today, children's musuem and Build and Grow yesterday. I did this month's calendar, and here we go again with another activity filled month. Exciting, tiring, fun? A combo. And I still find classes I'd like to do with Noah. I found a mommy and me Karate class. Wouldn't that be fun?

At the museum, I learned how to make shrinky-dinks.
Number 6 plastics (strawberry containers are usually number 6)
sharpies to decorate
325 on the toaster oven
Let the plastics bake - they will curl up and then lie back flat. When they lie back flat, they are done.

I still need to try this to see if it actually works. I loved shrinky-dinks, thought they were so cool. I had some Smurf Shrinky-dinks when I was little.

Purim festivities start this week. Looking forward to it.

Almost done

2009-02-26T11:21:00.002-08:00

Happy Birthday sweet boy!
You sure had fun on your big day, and it was everything we had practiced, singing, cake, blowing out candles. Whew! Time to start practicing for next year, sand cakes here we come!

The Bar will be over today. We'll breath a big sigh of relief, start making plans to move, and hope the results are positive. We've been waiting for this, and now it has come and about to be gone.

The past two months have been difficult. Or maybe it's the past three years. But I think it's all going to be alright.

Noah turned 3 last weekend. He had an awesome birthday party - digger trucks, digger cake, friends, and family. He was very happy to celebrate his big day, and is still enjoying opening up present. We unwrapped them, just haven't taken everything out of the boxes yet.

Eli ate sweet potatoes yesterday. His teeth are coming in and irritating him.

Noah was funny the other night. I was rubbing his back and he said, "Don't rub my back Mommy. I'm not a bath tub." He's silly. We are also trying to teach him manners, such as asking to be excused from the table. He learning to get the words in the right order.

Avocado margaritas - I'll be seeing you soon.

Then I need to get serious about school, packing, and getting us moved. But we'll start all that on Monday hopefully.

Accomplished

2009-02-09T18:00:00.000-08:00

(Finally getting used to this bath thing, no tears this past week.)

I feel like I am getting many things accomplished. I started doing Book-in-a-Week, and participated in it for the past 2 months. I needed something to get me writing again. Writing helps me in many ways: remember, create, think, vent, etc.

I also started my running again. I'm training for the Zooma 1/2. I'm not as fast as I was before pregnancy 2, but I'm working on it.

The theme a week has fallen to the wind. We've been letting Noah watch too much Cars. He loves it, luckily, we are finding different funny things about it after seeing it several times. We have had several discussions about how we should handle this TV issue.

Memorable events from the past weeks:
-Kosher Chili Fest - fun, some good chili and not so good. Kyle's team chili was sweet and savory. They didn't win. I thought surely the were close, but nope. It was really flavorful.
-Trying to bake one thing a week with Noah. Last week we made upside down German chocolate cake. Tasty. The week before we made lemon-banana muffins. Would have been alright with out my runny icing.
-Noah is becoming so expressive in music class. He wasn't like that even last fall, but now he's talking and interacting with the teacher and other kids a lot. It's nice to seem him singing the songs and giving suggestions to add to the songs.
-They changed Noah's teacher, which we weren't too happy with. I liked his teacher, but apparently the director thought a new lead teacher was a better move. Oh well. He's just having such a good school experience this year compared to last, trying to keep that happy feeling going.
-I'm trying to get Noah to call me Ima and Kyle Abba. No luck.

-Eli has been fussy ever since his shots last week. And now he's 4 months. We started rice cereal last week. So far, so good. Slurping it up, and no allergic reactions. He is also doing really well getting that head up. Today he even rolled himself from his tummy to his back. Soon we'll be chasing after him and Noah, and training dear sweet Eli not to put Noah's teeny tiny toys in his mouth.

(first rice cereal tasting)

-Kyle will be taking the bar in less than 15 days. ..yikes!!!
-and I try to avoid thinking about how we'll be moving and how much I'm going to miss Austin.

Chit-chats
Mommy: If you behave at the store you'll get a prize, what kind of prize to you want?
Nofah: A doo-doo
Mommy and Daddy: Ewww, that's gross.
Nofah: A fatty.
Daddy: That's illegal!

HAHA! He actually chose a healthy snack.

I'm thinking of creating a new blog when we move. Say good-bye to Austin, and hello to our new adventures. Not sure thou.

Sick Week

2009-01-18T18:19:00.000-08:00

(finishing up a penguin castle project)

(sick little boy)

This week our house was filled with the cruddy, crud. So we watched way too much tv, hacked our lungs out, had abundant amounts of snot, and pretty much are now recovery. I luckily did not get sick (knock on virtual wood). Every one else got the crud.

I did have a fabulous mani, pedi, facial, and massage today - thanks to my wonderful husband. This was my first facial and I'm sure how I feel about it. I was a bit claustrophobic and the extracting things out of my skin did not feel pleasant. My skin feels great now those, glowing and squeaky clean.

Noah swam with his teacher today - which was a big deal. Two weeks ago he was screaming and crying and couldn't even get through the lesson because he is so used to swimming with Kyle. That was break through today. We also feel we are at a point to stop to with the star chart for telling us he needs to go potty. Let's hope he doesn't regress. He has practically ever excavator truck known to man kind.

Eli also caught the crud. But he has remained pleased, if a little vomity. He has a funny laugh and such a calm demeanor. He has mostly wanted to be held during his sickness. And he discovered his foot this week. Kept holding it up and examining it, not sure what it was.

(the thinker)

Well time for bed, and reading. I've almost read 3 books in '09. My goal is fifty. We'll see.

Penguin Week

2009-01-10T18:13:00.000-08:00

(Painting Baby Penguin)

(Tacky and Baby Penguin)

In the new year, I am attempting to have a theme a week for Noah. He just needs some entertainment and focus, and we watch too much TV. This week we tried to talk about penguins.

Books we read: Tacky the Penguin, Tackilocks, Three Cheers for Tacky, Penguin, and Penguin Pup for Pinkerton.

Movie we watched: Happy Feet

Crafts: We made a penguin using a toliet paper roll. I found a worksheet for making a toilet roll penguin. My penguin (the nicer one) is named Tacky and Noah's is named Baby.

Another craft I am hoping to get to - maybe tomorrow - is creating a marshmallow kingdom for the penguins. I bought big and little marshmallows and the plan is to glue them and build a kingdom on top of a cardboard covered with aluminum foil. Sounds fun.

He's into frogs this week. I'm thinking of find some frog crafts for next week.

Eli watches us or sleeps. Some day he'll join in the fun.

Dance Show

2008-12-16T20:00:00.000-08:00

Just got back from Noah's first dance show. He had a bad experience a couple of weeks ago because he had to wear and funny hat. Apparently the other girls laughed at him. Of course his hat was completely different from the others. Maybe that's because he is the only boy. We going to be on a break for awhile so I hope he continues to like dance class afterwards. I guess it won't be the end of the world if he doesn't keep dancing - he just looks so cute. I think it teaches him discipline too.

Ultimately, he did go up and dance. He didn't quit! And he was brave! Plus we bribed him with lots of cookies if he danced.

Made Blogger Easier

2008-12-05T00:03:00.000-08:00

It is very late, and I have become the expert procrastinator. I figured out how to change the background finally. Well, blogger also made it easier. Blog for dummies! Thank-you.

My first semester of grad school is almost over. Unfortunately, I started off good, then the s... hit the fan. I've been keeping up with the things that I need to. We'll see.

Noah is almost, almost potty trained. It is a long process, and still not perfected. He trashed his room yesterday, took all his clothes out of drawers. Geez! He also was peeing on the carpet a couple of times. Don't know why, I'm guessing he enjoyed the designs he could make with his wee. He stopped doing that when we threatened to take away all of his toys.

Today we did crafty things. I need to plan a craft for everyday after school. At least while the weather is cold. We made a Hannukah wreath and a dreidel decoration. We had fun.

Eli is getting better at sleeping. He's been asleep for about six hours now. Wow! That's a first. As soon as do lay my head down, he'll probably wake up. That' kind of why I stay awake, because inevitably he's going to wake me up right?

He's already 14 pounds and super cute. He coos and smiles. He has a very different disposition than Noah, seems more content with his environment.

Things are plateauing for the moment. We are getting the hang of two kids and our crazy lives. Now we have to get ready to change everything with a big move. But that's not for a while.

okay...sleepy...sleepy....

Welcome

2008-10-07T19:54:00.001-07:00

Eli Josiah
Born October 2 at 8:32 am.
71bs 12 oz, 19 and 3/4 inches long

And I thought life was crazy before October 2.

Arrrr...Matey

2008-09-15T11:40:00.000-07:00

We be havin' awesome weather today. It's almost chilly and strangely fall like. Sigh, the sun is coming out.

We had fun this weekend doing free stuff. We built a pirate ship on Saturday and Sunday was Free Museum day, so we went to the Bob Bullock Museum for a little while, it was a little to dark and scary for Noah. Then we went to the Lady Bird Johnson Wild Flower Center, which is full of gorgeous flowers. It is also really calm and peaceful, and Noah got to run around, another plus.

We hope to put some of these flowers in a our yard some day, Snow on The Prairie.

Apparently, these days there is only one space between sentences. I have to really concentrate to break the habit of two spaces. Why doesn't this info make the news?

Arrrrr!

Dancin Shoes

2008-09-08T18:22:00.001-07:00

(getting ready for dance class)

Dance class went well, he seemed to really like it. He is the only boy, hopefully, he won't notice or mind that for a while. He doesn't really get the moves, but he is watching and trying, which is something. And he gets to wiggle around and go nutso.

We have been telling Noah different names that his brother or sister might be and asking if he likes the name.

He keeps saying, "No, I want a brother (sister) named Mickey Mouse." We are no longer asking for his help in naming the baby.

Happy Grandparents day

2008-09-07T20:00:00.000-07:00

to Mimi, PawPaw, Bubbe, Zeitie.

We had a busy weekend - We went to tot Shabbat on Friday, and Noah started doing some of the sign language for the Sh'ma for the first time, which was pretty awesome. Went for a run Sat. Noah is loving running and we need to find some kids 1ks to run. Also, went to b-day party for a fellow Pony (that's Noah's classroom) at The Little Gym. Oh yeah, and before went running we went to Gymboree - what a busy Saturday!
(the runner in training)

So today, I was tired, and we stayed up too late last night playing games with Kelly, Abram, and Jared. Which explains why we didn't do much today except recycling and a Goodwill trip. And tomorrow begins a new week, and classes start for Noah. We have a dance class tomorrow - new place, new teacher, hopefully it will go well. I had to deal with a tap shoe debacle this weekend - bought girl tap shoes when we needed boy ones (it's a tap/ballet class) -had to go exchange them, and now we are waiting for the boy tap shoes to come in -
oh the woes!

Above is what I will conquer this year! I will organize the dang garage. It would be nice to use,instead of parking our car in the sun. Slowly we are getting rid of crap. That's why I'm giving myself a year.

I'm looking forward to getting my Debbie Meyer Green Bags, which is going to save all my fruit and veggies!

I should be studying, but my husband is playing computer games and inspiring me to be lazy! Goooo lazy!

Must Blog More

2008-09-03T19:14:00.001-07:00

or else I can't remember what I've been up too. I was looking at Noah's baby, baby pictures and trying to remember when he did what, first smiles, laughs, coos, etc. so I could scrapbook. I probably have it written down some where, as these days I start and journal and don't keep up with it.

Then AHA! I remembered I had a blog that I used to write more regularly on, and then I started think, well there's one way to start documenting things again.

Right now I can't remember if I'm 35 weeks pregnant or 36. See what I mean?

So to summarize what has happened over the past half a year -

--Baby 2 due Oct. 2. Don't know if it's a boy or girl. Will definitely need something to manage both kids great moments.

--quit my teaching job - YAY!

--taking graduate classes to work on Masters

--Noah talks a lot more, doesn't behave sometimes, spends time out in his room (not too much), he's very agreeable most of the time.

--spent our summer in San Antonio and Houston, many, many adventures there.

--now just chillin', well mostly studying.

So I guess I didn't miss out on too much...sigh...not sure where to focus.

Right now feels like the eye of the hurricane, until Baby Souflee arrives and then we'll see how life rearranges it self.

And tonight we are playing hide the night light with Noah. Well he is playing and we are annoyed by it. He yells and screams that he can't find his night light. We go in try to find it. Then Kyle says, well too bad, guess your going to have to sleep in the dark. Shut door, go back a couple minutes later....lo and behold Noah has found his night light. He just doesn't want to go to bed, and it's way past his bed time.

Gatti Town

2008-01-03T19:05:00.000-08:00

What is it about winter and eating? I start off the day good, counting my points, then blow it all by going to Gattitown. I must need more fuel because I am freezing and need to create heat to stay alive. I must be resorting to living off my poor, lonely fat cells. Lonely fat cells need the companionship of fatty pizza cells.

Gattitown was fun. You have to pay the buffet price to even enter and then it is eat, eat, eat. Take a break, spend money on video games, and go back and eat some more. I like their set up over Chuckie Cheese. At Chuckie Cheese, the games, the food, and the singing cheese gang are all in one big room. At Gattitown, there are seperate rooms, a tv room, a dining area, another tv room, and the game room. Some peace can be achieved every now at then. Noah loved the bowling. I loved their desert pizzas. Kyle would have loved to eat more salad.

I am taking a break from my GRE cramming. Going to bed early tonight (hopefully).

To celebrate my finishing the GRE, we are going to Washington on the Brazos - a state park. We are very into state parks since we went to the Bentsen State Park in Mission. There are so many of them to see.

(Bird watching at Bentsen State Park)

Here's to hoping I do satisfactory on the GRRRRRRREEE tomorrow! Grrrr.....

Chicken Watchin'

2008-01-02T20:25:00.000-08:00

Today we went to the Boggy Creek farm to watches some chickens. It was too cold, so we didn't stay long. Then we went to the Blue Hanger Goodwill for the first time. Wow, it's like a giant Ropa Usada but with more stuff like books, toys, houswares. The other shoppers were aggressive. That's Noah's new truck.

I think Noah ate grapefruit for the first time today, and ate it up. I found a recipe for broiled grapefruit in Cuisine at Home. You take half a grapefruit, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and 1 tablespoon of coconut, then broil it for 1-3 minutes. Delicious! I just find the recipes, Kyle does the actually cooking. I think we'll be having that for breakfast tomorrow, and Noah get his own half instead of half of my half.

One more day until I take the GRE. I just don't think I can learn all that much more at this point. I've refreshed my math, and still suck at analogies, and my vocab. is too limited. Oh well! Wish me luck.

HAPPY 2008!

2008-01-01T09:49:00.001-08:00

*The cousins watching the parade.
* Rocking in the new year.

I will try to write more.

We went to First Night and watched the parade. It was rather cold, as the day had been deceptively warm. There were some interesting floats and dancing bibliophiles with their carts.

Then we went to Charlie and April's to eat, drink, and play Guitar Heroes. I'm feeling like I want to play some more. I can learn how to play this game! It's quite taxing on the hand, eye, brain coordination. Noah went to bed, way past his bedtime, crying "rock out, rock out" because he wanted to play the game.

Here comes 2008 - may we all "ROCK OUT"!

Been busy...

2007-04-29T19:38:00.000-07:00

...doing a little of this....

...saving Noah from this...
...some more of this...

...and of course this...and this...
Gotta love the lifestyle!!!

Happy Birthday!

2007-02-21T10:31:00.000-08:00

to Noah!!! One year ago this sweet, wonderful boy was born, and we haven't sleep since! Oh well! We went on another photo shoot today. Put your order in for any of the above pictures!

11 months old

2007-01-21T17:08:00.000-08:00

You at 11 months -

+ we can no longer block you into one area. You are everywhere, into everything. Especially the cabinets in the kitchen. I don't even think dropping a pie plate on your foot made you realize you shouldn't be in there. Hurrican Noah has made landfall.
+walking like crazy. Not the suavest, but you can't get enough.
+realizing cause and effect - playing with the glow worm and dancing to the music. Turning the tv off while we are watching it....grrrr....
+words are trying to be formed...ba for bottle...pa for puffs...dada...for mom and dad...you go brrrr when you are playing with your airplane or see a moving vehicle.
+you are pretty friendly. Smiling at strangers, handing people golf balls at the Children's Museum.
+want to eat everything thing...EVERYTHING...carpet fuzz, paper punches, grapefruit, chocolate pudding, green beans, granola bars, yogurt, turkey bacon...and yet you still want us to give you water in a bottle. A sippy cup is too tedious.
+you like reading, and know which page you are looking for when we are reading Wild Animals (the frog with the sticky feet).

The future: I've decided, you will only wear diapers and a t-shirt during the summer. It's much easier to change you that way, and we'll even throw on a paper of shorts - if we have too. We can go to the Children's Museum all the time, because now we are members. More experimenting with food, because we bought this neat contraption for veggies and fruits - The Fresh Food Feeder, but it has this mesh so you won't choke. We'll see.

Today we went to Oaxacan Tameleo - which was very good. The tamales are different. She doesn't use lard - she uses banana leaves. They were healthier tasting. This place also has a nice red mole. We'll probably be going there a lot - it's also extremely affordable. The tamarindo tea and fried plantains were all fabulouso. I also practiced my spanish - which is pretty poor - but it was fun to try. What is "to buy" in Spanish?

More fun at the Children's Museum.

Taking Steps

2006-12-11T18:04:00.000-08:00

Noah took many steps yesterday. He started off early in the morning with a two stepper. Then later in the afternoon he took about 8 or 10 steps. I couldn't catch the excitement with a photo because my stinkin camera is broken and in need of repairs. I have to hold it a certain way in order for it to work. It was very exciting to watch, I don't think he knew what he was doing. He looked very excited to be doing, and may have actually just been falling forward and his feet happened to be in the right place.

He's also been trying to feed himself.It's kind of messy. He did this all to himself. I took no part in painting he face with food - fer rizzle.Also on the menu, a pair of socks.Fun in a bowl...whee!!!

Our baby

2006-12-04T18:49:00.000-08:00

...won't go to sleep at night.

Maybe he just wants to keep on rocking in the free world.
Off to research how to make baby fall asleep.

Apron Swap

2006-12-02T08:38:00.000-08:00

I received my beautiful apron today. I might have received it yesterday, but we were running here and there, so I did not check the mailbox.
It is everything I imagined it could be. Sarah drew me - she is one of the hostesses of the apron swap. She's got some skills. My apron sparkles, is blue, and has the neat snowflakes sewn in which make a happy tinkling sound. I also received a bag of gelt and homemade tea. Thanks Sarah!

I drew Melissa. This was my first apron to make. Rather than go with something simple - I decided to make a reversible apron. The pockets really tripped me up on the red side. I have learned and know better what to do for next time. I sent a bunch of goodies to Melissa - cookies, hot cocoa, a holiday coffee cup, some candle holders and candles, a toy for her doggie, pot holder, and dish towel. I think that was it. I went with a santa theme.
Can't wait for the next apron swap. This was fun. Maybe I should go into the professional package making business.

9 Months Old

2006-11-21T19:37:00.000-08:00

Another doctor's visit, luckily no shots. But today was a yucky day, is there a full moon tonight? The day started out well. Then at noon it went into to super crap mode. I got another ticket, right outside my neighborhood, at the doctor Noah fell and cut his lip open (Kyle's fault - do have him tell the story), Kyle ate all this really good cheese I wanted to eat --- and well that's why my day was crappy. Okay, it wasn't so bad, but it sure felt that way.

9 month developments

He will almost certainly be mobile one way or another by now; either crawling, bottom shuffling or pulling himself up on a firm object and ‘cruising’ - walking around hanging onto the furniture
He will be able to pick up and put down toys at will, as his fingers are now a little more under his control
Your baby will be able to help feed himself and will enjoy picking up finger foods
If he is crawling he will want to explore everywhere
He may become shy of strangers and people he does not see often
Shape sorters: simple posting and sorting games which encourage him to match shapes or increase his dexterity
Activity toys: toys with buttons to press or turn that make sounds so he can learn that doing one thing leads to another thing happening
Bath toys: now he can sit unsupported he will enjoy filling and tipping water from a container and watching it splash

Gosh 9 months has gone by fast. I was reading someone else's random blog, and he has been equally alive inside and outside the womb - freakish. He's standing every now and then with out holding on to anything. He also really likes for us to chase him. He moves very fast, then he'll turn around to make sure we are still chasing him.

He does not go to bed on his own yet, which could become a problem- or I should just plan to continue rocking him to sleep at least until he goes to college. The nurse said we could start giving him more table food. Apparently by the time he is one we should start weening him off a bottle. I should read up more on this.

He's a lot of fun - busy body, strong, yeller, sweet smiles, happy, laughing, stubborn, persistent, charming, sooo curious --- and we love him so much!!!

Here is the fabric I bought for this apron swap I am doing. I ended up not using the decals. I'll probably just send them with the package. I hope my pal likes what I made, I'm nervous and in perfectionist mindset - even though I know what I made is not perfect ---which makes me even more anxious.

We been berry busy...

2006-11-13T18:48:00.000-08:00

--Dressing up for Halloween.

--making baby Renaissance costumes.

--going to the Renaissance Festival

--walking for the cure.

--trying on more funny hats.

Enjoy the photos!

8 months old

2006-10-24T18:31:00.000-07:00

and we partied in Port Aransas - too quickly went the time. But there was a lot of time for funny hats. More teeth are a coming in, 2 at one time, and there is lots of drool. Finally, the little guy is sleeping in the crib, not with us anymore. We had a cry over that. He was sooo warm and cuddly. But he'd also wake up at start scratching or slapping our faces.

Apparently he was a little terror in day care yesterday, scratched one baby's eyelid, pulled another's hair, and shook another one. I hope this doesn't become a habit.

What is it like to be 8 months old?

How I grow

I crawl backwards and forwards on my stomach.

I pull myself up by holding onto furniture, but it is hard for me to get back down. (He's good at getting back down)

I can stand up if I lean against something.

I can sit without support for several minutes (all the time)

I reach for things and hold them with my thumb, index, and middle fingers.

I hold onto a toy, like a rattle, for several minutes.

I pick up small things like pieces of string or crumbs. (ewww, yes, today he was playing with a dead spider)

How I talk

I let you know if l am happy, sad, or scared by the sounds that I make. (or grumpy)

I still babble a lot and shout to get attention. (our little scream factory)

I say two syllable sounds like ba-ba, da-da, and ma-ma. (he forgot how to say mama -bah!_

I recognize some words. (working on No!_

I watch and try to imitate your mouth movements. (oh yeah, that's funny, when I am chewing gum, then he starts chewing like he has gum)

How I respond

I like to pat and kiss my reflection in the mirror.

I turn and listen when I hear familiar sounds like the telephone or my name.

I love to imitate people I know.

How I understand

I am very curious and I want to explore everything.

I know how to solve simple problems, such as making a toy bell ring.

I understand the meaning of "in" and "out." ( I don't think he can do this)

I remember things that just happened.

How I feel

I'm often scared by new experiences and new people. (no fear here, a little too fearless if you ask me)

I'm upset when you leave me, even for a short time. (not yet, maybe something still to come)

I feel so relieved when you return.

I'm upset when people make a lot of fuss over me. (no, I think he quite loves the attention - a little divo)

I get frustrated or lose my temper if my toy rolls under the couch and I can't see it. (most times, but he is easily distracted by another toy)

pumpkin patch

2006-10-15T19:11:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun this Saturday at the Elgin Pumpkin Patch. Noah didn't want to smile because the places to take pictures either had scratchy burlap or hay. We tried. We might have to do another photo shoot.
Take two, not too happy about these pumpkin photos.

There were hayrides, Elgin sausage and corn on the cob, a hay maze, and lots of other stuff for bigger kids - like pumpkin decorating, face painting.

Noah really liked the swing and seeing the dog. He sure smiled at those things.

The pumpkin patch made Kyle nostalgic for nuts from Berdoll's Pecan Farm in Bastrop. So we drove to Bastrop in search of chocolate cover pecans. In the process, we happened upon an art festival on the Bastrop bridge. We went ahead and stopped there to look at the art. Bastrop surely is a pretty, quaint town. We plan to go back to visit the old downtown area. We had such a pleasant day.

Apron Swap Meme

2006-10-15T17:52:00.000-07:00

1. what kind of holiday party food do you like best? finger food buffet or sit down multi-course style?
Finger food buffet

2. do you make/use those little name cards for your table seating or is that just another little something that magazines are trying to add to our already long holiday to-do list?
In my ideal world, I'd like to make the name cards, have organized party. My organization skills need some polishing.

3. do you miss sitting at the "kid's table"?
Miss? I'm still treated like a kid, I guess because the couisins are all so much older than me, they still can't seem to grasp I'm an adult. Oh well, too bad for them, the kiddie table is FUN!

4. any particular holiday party traditions that you like to do every year?
no, just depends on what's going on that year.

5. Which is your favorite winter holiday?
New Year's Eve. Chaunnkah

6. do you make or have you tasted any good egg nog recipes...whether using it in a dish or as a drink? No, buy it already made. I saw a friend make it once, it took a long time.

7. fruit cake .... do you love it or think it should be used as a door stop?
Bleck! Does a good fruit cake exist? Bleck and barf!

8. What do you like to do to get yourself in the holiday sprit (ie. certain music, visiting certain seasonal sites, enjoying winter weather, ect.)
Enjoying the few cold days that occur, decorating with wintery things, seek fire places, hot chocolate

9. What is your favorite holiday song and who sings it best?
Don't have a favorite holiday song. Get rather tired of Christmas music at this time, as it is played everywhere to much.

10. Any ideas for interesting holiday themed parties? (Even if it's really out there -- like renting a snow machine and having everyone build snowmen if you live in a no-snow areas!)
Cookie baking, blue and white, ice sculptures, wear the tackiest sweater you can find party

This week

2006-10-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

Find the Noah...

I thought Noah was teething before. Now he's really teething and he's a mess, drooling, fever, pain, pain, pain...poor thing. And when he's in pain, well, so are we. As far as, we don't sleep as much, the stress levels are a little high with all the crying and not knowing how to make it better.

Luckily, I have a long weekend - to take a semi break. I can almost smell Thanksgiving a coming this way too, which is always nice.

We went winter shopping last weekend for Noah. Picked up this cute lion outfit which he wore for Yom Kippur eve. I love this outfit - finally some cute boy clothes. Perhaps I'll have to design a clothing line.
And all Noah wants to do is stand, and he keeps falling and hurting himself.
I mean how dangerous does that look, but he's cries if we don't let him stand up and do his dare devil tricks. Eeeeholee!
My sweetie surprised me with flowers in the mail this week. Aren't they gorgeous and doesn't he deserve a husband of the millineum award?

We are almost done watching the HBO Rome - which is fabulous and quite educational. Caesar was a bad ass.

Check out some of my scrapping recipes work. I'm part of this yahoo groups that swaps scrapbooked recipe cards. It's fun. These we some of the ones posted as examples of good work. Yay me!

Check out my button-->>>

2006-09-30T20:04:00.000-07:00

I figured out how to do it. I looked at the html of someone else's blog and figured out how to add my team Michael button. Pretty cooooollllll!!!! Now I'm going to have to add more buttons. It is so satisfing to figure something out without out too much frustration.

Sorry to all those I have not called back recently. My old school is in the process of moving to the new school and life has been wiggedy wack. One more week of this chaos, living out of boxes, kids thinking its the end of the school year because everything is packed up.

This week:

-Noah's bottom right tooth in front (what's it called - incisor?) finally started poking through just barely, not enough to get a good picture of yet. We felt it Friday, in the middle of dinner - sharp little tooth.
-little boy is dragging himself around and trying to stand up everywhere. The only thing is that he is pretty wobbly and has face planted on the floor (and into my lip - ouch - he cut it open)

The room was actually dark - he's been caught trying to make a crib break a couple of times this week instead of going to SLEEP!!!
-he's also getting excellent at moving from his tummy to sitting up, as this series of pictures displays.

Heave---Whop!Should I smile?

Laters peeps!

7 months old

2006-09-21T18:09:00.000-07:00

Wow does time fly. The little man is 7 months old today. He is working on trying to crawl, he is getting real good at dragging him self across the room, army style. He was doing well sleeping through the night, except for the past two nights, he has been a little sick, allergies or something. He is doing fantastic at sitting up. According to his daycare workers he learned to say something new, but they wouldn't tell and I'm crossing my fingers that it is "ma-ma."

6am this morning
Yesterday's funny big pants

Amazing Kid

Too cool for school

I wish we weren't so busy, and that groceries and dinner would magically appear in our house. Working is very time consuming and then I'm drained by the time I get home. The bed time routine is about all I've got left in me and some tv watching. That requires so little energy. I've been kinda of watching Dancing with the Stars. I wanted to see how Springer would do. And well, I've grown up with Joey Lawrence - whoa! I also have been religiously watching Project Runway - that show is fun and I've even got Kyle hooked. Then there is the new Aaron Sorkin tv show (creator of the West Wing), Studio 60 - so I had to check that out. And of course I gotta watch Rachel Ray.

Well, the kid is still sleeping in our bed, it's kinda hard to kick him out. He's soo cuddly.

What your baby can do:

	Not wobble when you hold her upright as she is able to put weight on her legs now (yes he's a superstar at sitting up)
	Sit unaided for quite some time
	May start crawling and if she hasn't yet, she will be getting ready for it by pushing herself forward in some way or the other (not quite crawling, but doing the pushing and can go quite fast when he does that.)
	Show preference for left or right handedness (looks like a right hander)
	Continue babbling, repeating sounds over and over again, especially the gurgling ones (yes, loves to blow rasberries - why are they called rasberries?)
	Feed herself with finger foods (not quite - we'd like for him to have teeth first)
	Look for a dropped object but forgets about it when she can't see it

my blogger broke?

2006-08-27T19:32:00.000-07:00

I don't know, but it's been looking funny for me.

Couldn't handle the cuteness I guess.

6th months old

2006-08-21T18:34:00.000-07:00

I had to take him to get some kiddie kandids. We have lots of cute wallet pictures , and we'll surely be giving them out to everyone. I think my favorite pictures are the one with the white background and the one in the suitcase. I should have brought some glasses - I was going for a nerdy look. The wagon pics are pretty darn cute.

A whole half of a year. Wow! Another doctor's visit and some more shots - ow!

He's weighing: 21 pounds on the money - I thought he was going to be heavier.
His height is: 28 1/4 inches - he's grown 2 inches in two months
His bubble head: 17 3/4 inches - what a brain!

What your baby can do:

	Express excitement by squealing and laughing and anger by screaming (oh yea - he's a screamer)
	Sit up when you hold his hands (yes, getting quite good at sitting up)
	Show a lot of interest in what is going on around him (busy hands junior - Uncle Larry is busy hands senior)
	Keep himself busy with his own company
	Push himself along by kicking (probably backwards first) as he is unable to crawl yet (or squirming)
	Grasp objects and pass them from one hand to another (yup)
	Respond to her name (yup)
	Pull long hair! (Beware!) (oh and scratch faces too - it's like my face is some sort of playdoh to him)
	Become wary of strangers quite unlike the friendly baby he was before (he's still pretty friendly - especially with the ladies)
	Become very talkative babbling something or the other all the time (dada this, dada that)
	May be able to sit in a high-chair

more human

2006-08-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

I am almost through with a huge work project, and I am beginning to feel more human. The constant state of chaos I felt this past week, has melted away into blissful hanging out with my family and friends, trying new recipes, and watching loads of foodnetwork.

This weeks pictures:

Aww, to be small enough to fit in a hamper again. He was getting fussy, so I thought he could use a new perspective.
New car seat - extra comfy - we might be fighting over this seat between the 3 of us.

Where's Noah -ldo?

New sippy cup, no liquids yet, but a nice teething chewy toy.

C'est La Vie

disgustingly busy

2006-08-11T19:29:00.000-07:00

If you can't already tell, school as started for me. I hate it already. This new principal is killing me. I already regret that I did not look for a new job during the summer. I guess I shouldn't look to him as a shining example, as he is demanding, yet does not have his shiznitz together. ARG! I did not have a good day today. He had me get a bunch of stuff ready to present for today. And then didn't even bother to let me present it. Blew me off when I tried to ask about it. I'm pretty pissed.

Anyhoo, Noah started his new daycare this week. He was really spoiled this week because is was only him and another baby in the unit. So he got a lot of attention, as he deserves it all. It's a daycare where where employees and high school students can leave their kids. The high school kids kids start next week. It'll be all different next week. But his daycare lady is very nice to him, and she is highly regarded by another teacher I work with.

This is a the most recent picture of Noah. He's getting better at holding that bottle. It's a little easier when the bottle is mostly empty.

This was the night Noah would not go to bed. We'd tried everything to get him to go to sleep. He stayed up until 10pm. Just wanted to keep playing I guess.

This one's just super cute. He doesn't just lay around on the couch, he likes to sit up and play with the remote control. Are we bad parents if our child is already a couch potatoe?

If I disappear again, it might be because I'm at the looney bin.

Happy Birthday

2006-07-30T20:43:00.000-07:00

...dear Kyle! Happy birthday to you!!!
Well, Kyle did not get hit by a sushi boat this birthday (august 2004, how do I link to old posts, anyone, bueller?). There were other fun travesties of the day. We had a delicious brunch at the Four Seasons. They served sushi for breakfast, wow what a concept. Abram broke a glass of orange juice on Kelly, who melted away when the orange juice entered his aura. The broken glass is being wisked away by the waiter. I realized how awful that must have been for Kelly, he hates oranges. I'm now imaging how disgusted I would be if Kyle threw raw onions all over my plate and clothes. Yuck!
Later on in the day Kyle bought a new laptop which did not work when we turned it on at home. Bummer!!! We did enjoy some tartlets and pizza at Whole Foods to finish the day off with.

We also went to Shakespeare at Winedale on Saturday. I really like this picture I took of Karen using those peace corp skills. Doesn't she just make it look so easy? That ice chest was very heavy.

I very happy both of these guys were born, and I am lucky to have them in my life!

5 Months Old

2006-07-21T19:58:00.000-07:00

(ymca baby)

(ahhh, the good life)

Our little boy is 5 months old today. (I gave up on that whole weekly updating, it got to confusing.) He's growing up too fast!!! He can now:
-Roll from his back to his tummy, but only seems to go towards his left side.
-Loves to say Da da da da, and hold several conversations in this language.
-Has starting eating solid foods, fruits and veggies. (we might start giving him coca-cola in his bottle at nighttime...8 P, and ice cream for dinner)
-he has begun to recognize he has a mom and a dad, and will experience stranger danger anxiety.
-still does not sleep in a crib.
-is quite the grabby hands, and really likes to play with paper

He's has been getting lots of attention, because grandma and grandpa are here. Luckily no stranger danger there, that wouldn't be any fun.

Now here's what a 5 month old can do:

	Delight in knowing that if he drops something, it can even come back (although he doesn't look for it herself yet)
	Head control improves further and can now hold his head steady when in sitting position
	Attract you to him by making a variety of sounds (yes like to coo or sigh very loudly)
	Put his feet into his mouth to play (our baby is not too interested in his feet)
	Begins to concentrate on small details on her toys
	Enjoy the sound of crumpling of paper (right on target with this one)
	Socialise with her reflection in the mirror thinking its another person
	Socialises and smiles at everyone who smiles back
	Start using combinations of vowels and consonants
	Differentiate between 'Yes' and 'No' when used in the correct tone (haven't tried doing this too much)

Off Balance

2006-07-13T13:05:00.000-07:00

This guy has been rolling from back to side a lot. We seriously need to baby proof the house soon.

I caught some sort of stomach thing this past week. It only lasted for a day, it was swift and sooo unpleasant. So, I haven't thought about food much. Plus we made this huge Chicken and Biscuits recipe on Saturday and have been trying to finish that off. I'm starting to get that cooking bug again, much better than that other bug I had.
Chicken Stew with Biscuits
3 whole (6 split) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
3 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
5 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
2 chicken bouillon cubes
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups medium-diced carrots (4 carrots), blanched for 2 minutes
1 10-ounce package frozen peas (2 cups)
1 1/2 cups frozen small whole onions
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley

For the biscuits:
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced
3/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 egg mixed with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan and rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then remove the meat from the bones and discard the skin. Cut the chicken into large dice. You will have 4 to 6 cups of cubed chicken.

In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock and dissolve the bouillon cubes in the stock. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the onions over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until translucent. Add the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot chicken stock to the sauce. Simmer over low heat for 1 more minute, stirring, until thick. Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and the heavy cream. Add the cubed chicken, carrots, peas, onions, and parsley. Mix well. Place the stew in a 10 x 13 x 2-inch oval or rectangular baking dish. Place the baking dish on a sheet pan lined with parchment or wax paper. Bake for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the biscuits. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas. Add the half-and-half and combine on low speed. Mix in the parsley. Dump the dough out on a well-floured board and, with a rolling pin, roll out to 3/8-inch thick. Cut out twelve circles with a 2 1/2-inch round cutter.

Remove the stew from the oven and arrange the biscuits on top of the filling. Brush them with egg wash, and return the dish to the oven. Bake for another 20 to 30 minutes, until the biscuits are brown and the stew is bubbly.

Note: To make in advance, refrigerate the chicken stew and biscuits separately. Bake the stew for 25 minutes, then place the biscuits on top, and bake for another 30 minutes, until done.

Rating:This one definitely makes a lot of food. It will be good to have around on those busy weeks. Slightly salty, might be our own faults for not using homemade chicken stock. Definitely comfort food. We made more biscuits with the leftover dough. While Ina Garten maybe able to prepare this meal in 30 minutes with tv magic. The assistance of Kyle in the kitchen still made this a 2 hour process. It's an involved recipe, but still a yummy. I'm branching off from Rachel Ray. She's still my fav, but Ina can sure throw a party. I want to go see her in the Hamptons.

I think I'm off to go make this Amazon Cake I found. I discovered more things on the internet, like Yahoo groups, cooking websites....ack. I was reading Zach Braff's (kyle's twin - now if only he could get his share of movie/tv profits) website (which doesn't work with Mozilla) and he said Kevin Smith spends a 1/3 of his life online. I'm getting pretty bad. It's just my fingers won't stop clicking. The mouse is like crack for my fingers!

Busy Week

2006-07-07T20:54:00.000-07:00

Favorite 4th of July Picture
We went to Round Top to see the 4th of July Parade and the Winedale kiddos. This was my favorite float in the parade. I might be a redneck and not even know it, because I swear we did tacky things like that when I was a kid. We used to swim in those plastic trash cans that kegs float in, filled up the back of my dad's truck with plastic lining and swam in that, and well after a good rain, gutter water made quite a pool. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

BABY
Awww, isn't he soo cute, looking at the book on his tummy while Daddy reads to him. Getting better at lifting that big ol' head And look at this guy try to sit up in his swing. I think he's pretty eager to get to walking. Oh dear god, we haven't child proofed the house yet!

HAIRCUT
I decided impulsively to cut all my hair of on Weds. I was tired of it falling out, which happens after being pregnant. My motto is that it will grow back eventually, so what the hell!!! Just call me Senora Helmut Head. Hey, Kyle had a mullet when he was in junior high, oh he'll deny it, but it doesn't get much worse than that.

FOOD
I made enchiladas suiza this week. Pretty darn good, a little too spicy, but not to hard to make and hit the Mexican food spot. We also added as much darn cheese as we wanted. This was a recipe taken from Self.Enchiladas Suiza

1 1/2 lb bone-in chicken breasts, skin removed
2 tsp salt
4 cloves garlic
5 peppercorns
1 lb tomatillos (about 8), husked
2 serrano chiles
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro
2 tsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup nonfat sour cream
8 corn tortillas (6" each)
1 1/2 oz Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Place chicken in a large saucepan. Add 6 cups water, 1 tsp salt, 2 garlic cloves and peppercorns. Boil. Reduce heat to low; cover. Simmer 15 to 20 minutes. Remove chicken. Pull meat from bones; shred; set aside. Place tomatillos and chiles in a saucepan; cover with water; boil over medium-high heat 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup liquid. Transfer to a blender; add remaining 2 cloves garlic and cilantro; blend until smooth, adding liquid if necessary. Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add tomatillo-chile puree; reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring constantly, 10 minutes or until sauce reduces to about 1 cup. Reduce heat, add remaining 1 tsp salt and sour cream. Stir about 1 minute. Set aside. Heat oven to 350°. Heat a skillet over medium heat; warm tortillas 10 seconds per side. Divide shredded chicken evenly among tortillas; roll up. Spread 1/3 sauce in a 9" baking dish. Arrange enchiladas in 1 layer, seam side down. Cover with rest of sauce; sprinkle with cheese. Bake 30 minutes or until cheese starts to brown. Serve immediately.

Roberto Santibañez, culinary director at Rosa Mexicano in Atlanta

The skinny 406 calories per 2 enchiladas, 11.8 g fat (3.5 g saturated), 5.7 g fiber, 34 g carbs, 40 g protein

Source: Self Magazine
Opinion: Pretty darn good with lots more cheese than the recipe called for. And I'd like to try to stuff the actual enchiladas with cheese and chicken. Also, if you ain't to keen on spicy food, go with one serrano instead of 2.

I received my new Fonda San Miguel cookbook this week. (Yes, Dyan it does have that lovely cajeta crepe recipe, I'll try to get a photocopy to you). Fonda San Miguel is a wonderful resturant that serves interior Mexican food. It is sooo yummmmmmmmyyyy!!!! We went there for our negative 1 year anniversary for brunch.

Arroz Blanco
Basic White Rice

2 tablespoons safflower oil
2 cups long-grain white rice
4 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed

Heat oil in a heavy, 3 quart saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add rice. Stirring often with a wooden spoon, cook 8-10 minutes, or until the rice is golden. Add chicken broth, reduce the heat to medium, cover, and cook an additional 20 minutes, or until all liquid has been absorbed. Fluff the rice and add salt, if necessary. Sprinkle with green peas and server hot. Serves 8

Source: Fonda San Miguel cookbook
Opinion: Fantabulous! We didn't use the green peas, but that didn't matter. Very tasty rice and it went well with the enchiladas.

On a seperate occasion, after a big lunch, we decided to have a light dinner of zucchini. Zucchini With Garlic and Lemon

Bread Crumbs Topping (optional)
2 slices white sandwich bread, torn into quarters
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Zucchini
5 medium zucchini (about 8 ounces each), ends trimmed
Table salt
1 small garlic clove, minced or pressed through
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for serving, if desired
1-2 teaspoons juice from 1 lemon
Ground black pepper

1. For the Bread crumbs (optional): Pulse the bread in food processor until coarsely ground. Heat butter in a 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until melted. Add bread crumbs and cook, stirring frequently with heat proof rubber spatula, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

2. For the Zucchinis: Cut each zucchini crosswise into several pieces, each 2 to 3 inches long. Shred each piece on large holes of box grater, rotating as needed to avoid shredding seeds and core (which should be discarded); you should have about 10 cups shredded zucchini. Toss zucchini with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and place in colander set in medium bowl; let drain 5 to 10 minutes. Wrap zucchini in kitchen towel, in batches if necessary, and wring out excess moisture.
3.Place zucchini in medium bowl and break up any large clumps. Combine garlic with 2 teaspoons oil in small bowl; add mixture to zucchini and toss to combine throughly.
4. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in 12 inch nonstick skillet over high heat until faint smoke appears. Add zucchini and spread evenly in pan with tongs; cook without stirring until bottom layer browns, about 2 minutes; stir well, breaking up any clumps with tongs, then cook until "new" bottom layer browns, about 2 minutes more. Off heat, stir in lemon juice and sald and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, drizzling with additional olive oil, if desired, and sprinkling with bread crumbs, if using.

Serves 4
Source: Cook's Illustrated/August 2006
Opinion: OMG this zucchini is now my favorite way to eat zucchini. I did not know zucchini could taste this good. Typing up the directions, the recipe sound difficult. Kyle actually made this one, and as a watcher it didn't seem to take him that long. I love lemon, and this recipe has lots of good lemon. This one's a keeper that we'll have to rotate through the recipes. We didn't do the bread topping. And we buy garlic alread minced up. I like to take short cuts when I can.

Baby 'Tude

2006-07-02T21:25:00.000-07:00

We bought the little Darwin outfit at Moxie and the Compound. We happened to be in the neighborhood because I went to my first knitting meet up. Imagine a table of 15 women knitting and chatting. It was quite fun and I just might finish that scarf I've been working on for Kyle the past year.

Baby Noah is getting better a rolling from his back to his side. And he seems to be adding more syllables to his baby talk. It sounded like he replied "hey" to Kyle when Kyle said "hey". Exciting stuff. He's also become quite the grabby hands. He'll like to grab anything we are holding, romote control, cell phone... And one of his favorite toys is papertowel sheets. He's enjoying that cloth book a lot too.

So Much Food

2006-07-02T20:37:00.000-07:00

I don't even know where to begin. So I'll start with desert first.

Currently we are in the process of finishing up the last batches of chocolate chip cookies. I had to give the new kitchen aid artisian mixer a whirl.

Dessert/Midnight Snack: Urban Legend Chocolate Chip Cookies

(too lazy to copy properly) Good if you like a chunky and chocolatey cookie. We are thinkinfg of adding coconut next time. I'm a coconut freak!

Dinner Tonight:

Chicken Curry
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons curry powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Cooked white rice
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
1/4 cup (1 ounce) almonds, roughly chopped
Rinse the chicken and pat it dry with paper towels. Cut it into 1-inch pieces and place in a bowl. Sprinkle it with the curry and cinnamon, toss, and set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and zucchini and cook until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Heat the remaining oil in the skillet. Add the chicken and cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes total. Add the broth, cream, salt, and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer. Return the onion and zucchini to the skillet and heat until the chicken is cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes.

Divide the rice among individual bowls, top with the curry, and sprinkle with the basil and almonds.

Tip: You can vary the ingredients depending on what you have on hand. Consider substituting coconut milk for the cream, eggplant for the zucchini, cilantro for the basil, or cashews for the almonds.
Yield: Makes 4 servings
Source: Real Simple July 2006
Opinion: Pretty tasty meal and didn't take too terribly long to make. Used pita in place of naan for the brea. Will probably make again.

Breakfast: Waffles (I don't know which recipe we used. It was a combo of two. But don't they look tasty. Not as good as Kyle's Dad's recipe. Tasted a little like bunuelos.)

And many nights ago we had...
Greek Chicken Pasta

1lb chicken breast cut into 1 inch pieces
8 ounces whole wheat penne
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Cook pasta in salted boiling water according to package directions. Drain and keep warm.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and saute 1 minute. Add chicken, brown for about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, parsley, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and simmer 10 minutes.

Spoon tomato sauce over pasta and sprinkle with feta.

Makes 4 servings.

Source: adapted from a poco-cocoa recipe.
Opinion: This one was way better than the other pasta recipe. It had a lot more flavor. This one's a keeper. And soooo easy.

If I gain 500 pounds this summer, you'll know why.

Solid foods & A Sweet Ride

2006-06-29T19:24:00.000-07:00

Today we fed Noah solid food for the first time. We went with oatmeal even though the doctors recommend rice because it is less allergenic. The oatmeal is supposed to not constipate as much, so we went with oatmeal. Ahh poop, the story of a baby's butt...er life.

It was quite messy and he doesn't reallyunderstand the concept of eating, because he was sucking down the food. We'll keep trying. We are supposed to stick with oatmeal for a week and then we can move on to the more colorful stuff like peas and carrots. Yum, yummmmmy!!!!

We also pimped Noah's ride out, (he looks very confused) and put together his deluxe stroller. That thing is soo cool. I can hook my mp3 player up to it and there are speakers so that Noah can hear the music too. The only down side is that the stroller people recommend the baby be able to sit up before we use it. He can't quite do that yet, but soon enough though.

Food and a Bev

2006-06-29T19:00:00.000-07:00

Wednesday meal was nothing special: Frozen veggies, left over rice noodles (which aren't half bad after if they are baked after they are boiled), possible freeze burned chicken and the fabulous Mr. Tieu special sauce. Mr. Tieu is very yummy- kind of spicy. He has an inspirasian effect on us.

With our new blender....(strike up that little mermaid song) ahahahahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaa....

We made these tasty little drinks.
Frozen Cloud

2 cups light ice cream (not sure what that means, we used Bluebell)
1/3 cup vodka
1/4 cup creme de cacao
6 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in blender jar. Cover and blend at Liquiefy, pulsing 4-5 times, about 10 seconds, each time, until slushy.

Yield: 4 (about 1/2 cup) servings
Source: Kitchenaid blender book

Tonight I adapted a recipe from Poco-Cocoa.It was okay, not to die for. I feel like it was missing something. I have some leftovers that I am planning to add a ton of mozzerella too. We'll see if that's the missing link. Penne with Roasted Asparagus, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and Pine Nuts
(we deveganed this recipe-sorry chicken)

12 ounces thin asparagus, bottoms trimmed and cut diagonally into 2-inch pieces (we used broccoli instead)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup oil-packed or rehydrated sun-dried tomatoes
1 pound whole wheat penne
2 large garlic cloves, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1lb. of chicken breast (we added this to the recipe)
a few pinches of parmesean to top it all off

Preheat oven to 450˚F. Toss the asparagus with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and place on a lightly oiled baking sheet (lined with foil for easy cleanup). Roast just until tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Cut the tomatoes into 1/4-inch-wide strips and set aside.

Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes.

While the pasta is cooking, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the roasted asparagus, tomatoes, and salt and pepper to taste. Reduce the heat to low and keep warm.

Drain the pasta and place in a large, shallow serving bowl. Add the asparagus mixture, basil, and pine nuts. Toss to combine.

Makes 4 servings.

Source: Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson.

Reading

2006-06-28T12:55:00.000-07:00

We finally put Noah's high chair together. So now he can sit at the table with us when we eat. Heck, we finally started eating at the table instead of on the couch in front of the table. Looks like he's reading to his bunny.

Vietnamese Beef Salad

2006-06-28T12:43:00.000-07:00

This recipe was kind of strange. We liked the beef, noodles, radish and the sauce, but did not feel that the papaya fit into the dish. I personally was expecting the papaya to taste like mango, so maybe that's why I was so disappointed in their flavor. Maybe next time when we try it, we'll add mango instead. Also, I don't believe we got the right noodles. We ended up having to bake /fry those to fully cook them.

We'll probably try it again, we are beef fans. Now we have a ton of papaya to eat, and I'm not really looking forward to that. Any ideas for how to make papaya more pleasant?

Vietnamese Beef Salad

1 flank steak (1 1/2 to 2 pounds)
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
4 ounces thin rice noodles
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger (optional)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 papaya, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves (optional)
Place the steak and soy sauce in a large resealable plastic bag. Refrigerate for 2 to 8 hours.

Heat grill to medium or place a grill pan over medium heat. Cook the steak to the desired doneness, about 5 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer to a cutting board to rest for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the noodles according to the package directions. Rinse the noodles under cold water and drain.

In a small bowl, whisk together the ginger (if using), lime juice, brown sugar, salt, and sesame and peanut oils.

Thinly slice the steak across the grain. Divide the steak and noodles among individual plates. Top with the radishes and papaya, drizzle with the dressing, and sprinkle with the cilantro (if using).

Tip: Look for a papaya that has a smooth, dark green skin with a touch of yellow. It should give slightly when squeezed. If you can find only firm papaya, place the fruit in a paper bag and leave it on a counter for a couple of days. Yield: Makes 4 servings

Source: Real Simple July 2006

Marinated Tomatoes

2006-06-26T20:53:00.000-07:00

Tonight's dinner: Pasta w/pesto, marinated tomatoes, and cheesy toast

Pasta with pesto is just something that can be bought at pretty much any grocery store.

The marinated tomatoes were awesome. I'm not normally a tomato person. I find them to watery and tasteless for the most part. Now these marinated tomato are da bomb!
Marinated Tomatoes
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
2 to 3 green onions, chopped
4 to 6 large tomatoes, each cut into 6 wedges

Combine all ingredients, except tomatoes, in a large measuring cup or mixing bowl. Whisk well. Place tomatoes in a resealable plastic bag and pour marinade over. Marinate at room temperature for up to 2 hours, turning the bag occasionally.

Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Source: Food Network - Paula Deen

***Mean people suck. Some dumbass commented on my you tube and was rude. What a jerk- I could kick his dumbass all over the internet.***

Little Monkey

2006-06-25T22:24:00.000-07:00

Little Monkey Noah went in the swimming pool for the first time yesterday. He enjoyed floating around on his water cruiser.

Not only does the camera add 10 pounds, but so does the water -eee gads!
And today we did a photo shoot, cuz I think that little monkey outfit is cute and I'd like to scrapbook it using that as a theme. Gosh he's so darn cute!

Vivo

2006-06-25T22:18:00.000-07:00

Go to Vivo - they give all the women roses at the end of the meal. And check out the ladies restrooms:And the foods not that bad either. They have an item called a puffy taco, which is a fried corn tortilla made into a taco. Pretty darn good. If you want to go there, I'll be happy to accompany you!

We WILL Cook

2006-06-25T21:29:00.000-07:00

Since we will be on a very strict budget next year (meaning 2 months - a teacher year), we at Chez Freak will need to cook more often and eat out less. As I am lazy and enjoy eating out a lot, I am challenging myself to cook more. It's been kind of difficult with the move and dishes everywhere, but here begins our attempt to have good food. I would like to make food memorable for Noah. I want him to describe his favorite meal Mom and Dad make, not his favorite happy meal. I have fond memories of my parents gumbo, cheesy mash potatoes, delicatable brisket...mmmm. I still try to play sick to get my mom to make me gumbo. I'd also like to learn how to make enchiladas.

I battle with wanting to make easy food during the week because we are so busy, and Kyle enjoying the really complicated recipes. I like the complicated recipes when there is time. Now that we have a new kitchen aid, I'd like to try some of those complicated recipes.

Anyhoo, we love food. And apparently our chubby baby will follow our path.

The Sunday menu included:
Lunch: Subherban Renewal (adapted from Cosmic Cafe's Herban Renewal)
Dinner: Chicken and Peaches Platter (Real Simple - July 2006)

Subherban Renewal

2 slices of favorite bread
cream cheese
spinach (buying the bagged washed spinach will make it easier, we just bought a new salad spinner, so that make it a little easier and cheaper.)
mushroom
Mozzerella (shredded)
avocado slices
2-3 tbls. white wine
1-2 tbls. olive oil

Alot of the above ingredients are to ones tasting and can be made larger or smaller based on taste and hunger level.

Preheat oven to 350.

Recommend toasting the bread. Spread cream cheese to desired amount on both slices of bread. Add the avocado slices. Tell bread and avocado to wait patiently while you sautee mushrooms and spinach.

Sautee mushrooms in olive oil for 1-2 minutes. Add white wine. Continue sauteeing another 2-4 minutes or until soft, allowing some of the white wine to evaporate. Add spinach. Wilt spinach (1-2 mins.)

Drain some of the white wine after wilting the spinach. Scoop spinach and mushrooms on top of the cream cheese bread. Place some on both sides. Sprinkle lots of mozzerella cheese on top of both bread pieces. Place open face sandwich in the oven for 3-4 minutes - keep an eye on the cheese meltage. When the cheese is melt, take the sandwich halves out oven place on plate, slap those slices together and enjoy.

Chicken and Peaches Platter

2 heads romaine lettuce, cut crosswise into 1-inch strips
1 store-bought rotissere chicken, meat thickly sliced
2 ripe peaches (peeled if desired)
3 ounces (1/4 cup) blue cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup (2 ounces) almonds roughly chopped
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Arrange the lettuce, chicken, peaches, cheese, and almonds on a platter. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper. Drizzle the vinagrette over the salad and toss.

Serves 6
Hand-on time: 20 min/Total Time: 20 mins.
Source: Real Simple, July 2006

Like the Wardrobe Refashion, there should be some challenge to not eat out as much and cook at home. That's just as challenging as not buying new clothes. Cheers to Chez Freak - we only went out for coffee and dessert - pretty good for us!

4 Months old

2006-06-21T14:02:00.000-07:00

And 4 months old, means another doctor's appointment and more shots - ewww! But he did a good job, and is now weighing in at a whopping 18 pounds, 13 ounces. Which means he's above the hundred percentile. But he's also 26 inches long, with a head circumference of 17 inches so that makes him mostly proportional.

Aww tiping the scale again.

While we waited, he did some deep sea exploring, I'm glad he was appropriately dressed.
Our little boy is getting so big!!! More shots at 6 months, he is not going to be a fan of the doctor's office. He was very suspicious today of the lady who was checking him out. Here's some of what out little guy can and can't do yet.

What is it like to be 4 months old?

How I grow

I turn my head in all directions.
I lift my head forward when I'm on my back and grab my feet with my hands. ( not real good at this one)
I sit up for about 15 minutes with my head and back straight if you support my body.
I prefer sitting instead of lying down. It's more interesting. (yeah, he's a couch potato, perhaps my fault, I watch too much Dr. Phil and Oprah)
I roll from my back to my side, but sometimes, I get my hand caught under my stomach. (Noah's not really doing this one yet, we figure it's because his body is so big and he has more weight to try to manage)
I stretch my legs out straight when I'm on my back or my stomach.
I can reach for and grab a toy if it is close enough.
I put things in my mouth.
I splash and kick with my hands and feet in the bath.

How I Talk

I babble and imitate sounds like coughing and clicking my tongue for long periods of time.
I coo, grin, or squeal with joy when you talk to me.

How I respond

I love to see myself in the mirror.
I'm fascinated with my hands.
I like some people and am shy or scared of others. (he's a real people person, and quite a flirt)
I may have one favorite toy or blanket. (yup that would be Bluebonnet the dog or any of his frog stuffed animals. We got a new one that talks about feelings)
Our guy is also becoming facinated with his feet and toes, can't quite make them to his mouth though. He likes to stare at them, perhaps posing a plan in his head to lift them up.

How I Understand

I can remember things for about 5 seconds.
I know if something is near or far.
I'm aware of depth and distance.

How I Feel

I get excited when I'm having fun. Everything is a game to me. (yup, when it's time to go to bed, he thinks Daddy is playing with him, so he starts laughing and kicking)
I cry and get upset when you stop paying attention to me or take a toy away (just the other day we tried to take a piece of paper he was playing with away from him and he whined about that till we gave it back)
Add cranky to the list, because of those teeth that are trying to pop out.

Larry's B-Day

2006-06-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Larry's birthday. We all went to Maudie's, plus 16 of Larry's closest friends. Here's Larry, I gave him the gift of 10 hours of babysitting, here's hour number 1.

My other brother Charlie and his wife April. I think we are on basket number 3 of chips and salsa.
And Kyle looking so sad because he has to wait an hour to eat.

And guess who we saw at Maudie's? Mack Brown. He was walking with a cane and he looks so much smaller in person. Below are our ninja shots. We were too chicken to get real photos.

See that green shirt walking by on the left - Mack Brown's back.
Ah local celebrities!

We really enjoy Kimberely's Favorite, which are enchiladas with queso blanco and suiza sauce, but they just don't taste the same at the Lake Austin location. They are much better at the Brodie location. I also discoverd how delicious the chicken fajita quesadillas are, mwah! FABULOUS! Maudie's, for me, tasted the most like Rio Grande Valley mexican food. In my opinion, good Mexican food is hard to come by in Austin. It just lack that certain something something, perhaps it's the grease that's missing.

Happy Birthday Larry!!! He's still single ladies, snag him while you can.

Mono

2006-06-20T14:30:00.000-07:00

Isn't this little mono cute? I think that's spanish slang for little doll or something. It's just so ingrained in me I don't know what it means, other than we used to call little dolls mono (moeno), at least I think. My memory is becoming crap. I looked it up in the spanish dictionary and apparently a mono is an ape, boiler suit, jumpsuit, or monkey. Am I wrong on this mono thing? Monitos - anyone? As usually avoiding real work and the baby and I are practicing typing.

***don't know where the mono went, and i don't remember which website i got it from, but dang it was cute! - oh well! 6/21/06

Dancing Baby

2006-06-20T10:05:00.000-07:00

HERE!

The name of the song is, "Five Hundred Miles," by The Proclaimers.

When I wake up yeah I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who wakes up next to you
When I go out yeah I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who goes along with you

If I get drunk yes I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who gets drunk next to you
And if I haver yeah I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who's havering to you

Chorus
But I would walk 500 miles
And I would walk 500 more
Just to be the man who walked 1,000 miles
To fall down at your door

When I'm working yes I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who's working hard for you
And when the money comes in for the work I'll do
I'll pass almost every penny on to you

Chorus
But I would walk 500 miles
And I would walk 500 more
Just to be the man who walked 1,000 miles
To fall down at your door

When I come home yeah I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who comes back home to you
And if I grow old well I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who's growing old with you

Chorus
But I would walk 500 miles
And I would walk 500 more
Just to be the man who walked 1,000 miles
To fall down at your door

When I'm lonely yes I know I'm gonna be
I'm gonna be the man who's lonely without you
When I'm dreaming yes I know I'm gonna dream
Dream about the time when I'm with you

How We Move

2006-06-19T09:55:00.000-07:00

1. Rent and pay for giant UHaul.
2. Get giant Uhaul wedged between the street and the driveway (make sure we gouge out a hole in the street)
3. Experiment with methods of getting the UHaul unstuck, worry about someone losing a limb or having the giant Uhaul roll over and crush all.
4. Call tow truck, wait 2 hours because we need a super tow truck to lift the Uhaul.
5. Pay tow truck.
6. Finally listen to Abram, and pay for movers.
7. Sit back, eat lunch, watch movers sweat and easily lift our stuff.
7. Ignite and throw away useless UHaul.
8. Vow to always use movers for future moves.

Webby Awards

2006-06-15T12:12:00.000-07:00

The Webby Awards are out. They only allow for a 5 word speech. If you go beyond that, suffer the boos.

My five word speech..hmm...this is difficult...for some reason nacho cheese keeps running through my mind...Nacho Cheese is macho cheese.

What's your five word speech?

Goings On

2006-06-15T10:55:00.000-07:00

Since there is packing, cleaning, and laundry to do, I thought I'd go ahead and play around on the computer. So with baby on lap and kicking the keyboard in (its on one of those sliding shelves), I thought I'd update on my life.

So in no particular order,
-I'm am now a Mrs.
-we are homeowners
-school's out for the summer!!!!
-the air conditioner broke in our city condo (which I have just spelled corrected from condom, that would have been strange)
-we had to make an emergengy move last night to the new house, or else Kyle would have melted, and perhaps, just perhaps I would have too, I do have a higher tolerance for the heat (many, many thanks to Larry)
-the air has now been fixed yay (something just went bump in the attic though, perhaps broken again, I'll have Kyle deal with that when he comes home)
-I'm wishing I knew how to make my blog fancified.
-Little boy Noah is getting better at lifting his head up, it is quite the hefty head.
-I'm reading the Dark Is Rising (Susan Cooper) and The Girl With the Flammable Red Skirt (Aimee Bender)
-I am desiring to do some crafts and cooking, but I don't feel as if I can at the moment as we are divided between to homes
-I desire to join the Wardrobe Refashion but I pittled around too long and did not send an email. Now they aren't accepting any more pledges until August. Oh well, I'll take the challenge on my own and have begun to refashion a wintery dress into a summery dress.
-I'm really enjoying this site Poco-Cocoa. Reading it makes me want to craft and cook. I have discovered many, many craft blogs out there, I must say I'm excited and inspired.

That's pretty much what's been up. Now some cuteness brought to you by Noah, titled, 1. Boy lifts head, 2. Tuxy Boy, and 3.Gimme some food...or else...

Our Wedding Photographer

2006-05-22T19:08:00.000-07:00

Rocks!

We did a photo shoot in San Antonio yesterday, engagement/family pictures. They look great!

3 months

2006-05-17T19:26:00.000-07:00

Noah and Dottie Dots ( Thanks Maureen, he loves that frog!)

I'm counting from Tuesday to Tuesday from when Noah was born. Others count from the 21st to the 21st. Nonetheless, the little guy is 12 weeks old, thus, 3 months. Ah, thank-you high school algebra (good for nothing muckity muck!).

Anyhoo, life's been incredibly crazy per usual. Lots of crazy work stuff, personal stuff, wedding stuff, buying a house stuff, baby stuff, and some other serious stuff that I'm not completely over with, don't know if I ever will be. We had a friend pass away and it was incredibly, incredibly sad and really great loss. Abram has a good explanation of the loss on his blog but I don't know how to link directly to that post.

Tell us how you feel about being 3 months Noah, in your own words now.

Count downs: 6 days till schools out, 9 more days till house closing, 17 more days till the wedding, 18 more days till I can truly kick back. Maybe I should play some of these numbers in the lotto.

2.5 Months

2006-05-03T16:28:00.000-07:00

"Tobe, or no tobe, that is the question..."

We took Noah on a road trip to Winedale. Here's a little snippet of road trip behavior. Generally pretty good, unless he's got a poopy diaper or is hungry.

Then there was Baby's First Shakespeare. He's seemed to be enjoying the Shakespeare. Although a couple of those looks towards the end kind of look like he's saying can we please go now.

16 school days till the end of the school year - whoopie! That's all, my mind is exhausted by this point in the day.

You Tube

2006-04-22T15:38:00.000-07:00

I have finally set up a You Tube account - so basically for the grandfolks that don't live close enough, you can see small clips of video Noah. Pretty cool if I do say so myself, and it's free. Even cooler.

Check out Noah's cute little coos here.

A Doctor's Appointment

2006-04-21T19:58:00.000-07:00

As of today, Noah weighs 14 lbs. 10 oz. (he's heavier than 95% of babies his age) and is 24 inches long (longer than 90% of babies his age). Really incredible, because for the longest time we kept hearing what a small baby you have, I haven't heard that in a while.

While the numbers look big, his is actually pretty proportional weight and length wise. He's a good, healthy kid.

And he slept for a whole 6 hours last night. OMG!!! I woke up at three in the morning, before he did, I was so rejuvenated. I haven't slept six hours uninterrupted since...well...since I can't remember. I'll drink to that!!!! And I did, a nice Bourdeax.

But perhaps we pay the price now for all that sleeping, because we are sitting in the computer room and he is in bed laughing and playing around. I don't forsee 6 hours of sleep tonight. Oh well, once a week is quite amazing.

2 Months Old

2006-04-19T18:51:00.000-07:00

Little Noah can - smile, coo like crazy (it's so cute), and is so brave at daycare. He's getting better at holding that head up and really loves looking at ceiling fans. Go big boy!

Going back to work

2006-04-17T04:19:00.000-07:00

SUCKS!!!! That about sums it up. There are other cuss words I might use, but I'm trying not to cuss as much.

By the way, we have decided to stay in Austin. Kyle will go to UT. They offered him some money to sweeten up the deal...whoohoo!!! Go Kyle!!!

Here are some cute pictures ...

A passover outfit...An Easter outfit...A monkey...er some bunny earsCute expressions...
Why can't I be a trust fund kid and stay home with my baby???????

7 weeks old

2006-04-11T19:07:00.000-07:00

...and living the good life...feed me grapes, fan me...

Busy Weekend

2006-04-10T07:18:00.000-07:00

Did you know there is an organic farm right smack in the middle of Austin? It's called the Boggy Creek Farm. They have lots of fresh greens, smoked tomatoes (which apparently have been shown on the Food Network), and flowers, amongst their many items. They have market on Weds. and Sat. from 9-2, so if anyone wants to go, just give a holler and we'll join you. We met the owners at the Barr Mansion food tasting for the wedding.

The Market -Kyle examining the land -CHICKENS! They use their chickens for eggs only. Aren't these pretty flowers?

That's how we started out weekend out, by going to the market. We bought and have tried escarole. Kyle - the cooking genius - whipped the escarole up with a some shallots and goat cheese - it was delicious. This weekend, the weather was gorgeous, and probably the only two days of spring we will have.

We also went to a our friends' wedding shower.

I feel like we were busier than I have stated. We drove around a lot doing typical errands, that can surely eat a chunk out of relaxing time.

The farm was the highlight of the weekend, and Kyle's escarole saute was quite exciting too!

Projectile Poop

2006-04-07T08:09:00.000-07:00

Yup, that's what our baby did a couple of days ago. I was the sole witness of flying poop, it was gross and very funny. Later that evening, the baby performed pooling poo for Kyle. Ahh!!! Good times!
Promptly after the long distance poo shot, I was trying to clean it all up, and he decided to become the Little Squirt on his outfit.

No pictures were taken - darn! I could have scrapbooked baby's first projectile poo!!!

"Uhh mommy...that's not funny!"

6 weeks

2006-04-04T04:57:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm down to 2 weeks till I have to go back to work, which I'm not looking forward too. Alas we have to eat. Here's Noah this morning, still sleeping. I like how he has his little arms . I'm trying to practice being on a work schedule. I was able to stay awake after the 5:30 am feeding.
I think yesterday was baseball's opening day. If it was then, Noah was appropriately dressed for the big day, if it wasn't, then he's sporting the lastest in spring fashions and looking adorable (need some more synonyms for cute).

And he's smiling for some other papparazzi camera.
Last but not least, baby's first babysitter - Uncle Larry - is he sleeping on the job? (Kyle and I had to go to a food tasting for the wedding - which was awesome and delicious - but ya'll with find this out when you come to our wedding).

All parties involved in the babysitting survived. Note the perpendicular baby in the background - trying to escape Larry or magically trained by Larry? We'll just never know.

Smiles : )

2006-04-01T21:08:00.000-08:00

Noah is starting to smile and it's sooo cute!

Not gonna smile, not gonna do it, wouldn't be prudent.

What's that you say about George Bush?
"President Bush announced we're going to Mars, which means he's given up on Earth." —Jon Stewart

"Speaking of President Bush, right now he's in Cancun, Mexico. He's down there looking for tequila of mass destruction." --David Letterman

That's pretty funny!!! Can I be president now?

And an extra smile because it's April Fool's Day - and my parent's anniversary!

5 Weeks Plus

2006-03-30T12:35:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I was trying to get pictures up to show the 5th week of Noah's growth and progress, but this week has been pretty busy. And I ate cheesecake and I don't think it agrees with the baby's digestive system as he was crying all day on his 5th week of life, unless he was just reliving his birth all day long. We were out of town yesterday.

Go Horns!This one's just cute.
Noah's first beer...and second beer... (We were at a Keep Austin Blue rally of some sort.)

and passing out. Uncle Abram started taking the pictures of Noah with the beer.

Well Dr. Phil is about to be on, or I could clean up the household, or do some grading..oh choices!

Big 30

2006-03-27T20:00:00.000-08:00

Today I turn 30. I don't feel 30. I feel tired, but that's more because I have a one month old. The highlight of my day was a pedicure at a salon called Illiminada, which is an awesome salon. They serve you wine with the pedicure. How awesome is that? The lovely, sweet, wonderful Kyle gave me this gift. Most of the partying happened this weekend, which was a lot of fun - Maudie's, margaritas, red velvet cake from Whole Foods (which is delicious!!! - and fat free, naturally 8 P), hanging out at the Art Outside show on a beautiful day, seeing family, laughing about silly stuff, eating Egg Foo Young at Hao-Hao.

Today was rainey, dreary, and oh so a Monday - not a good day for partying.

Time to tend to crying baby.

4 Weeks Old

2006-03-21T20:03:00.000-08:00

Noah's 4 weeks old today or 1 month - saying 1 seems insignificant to the 4 weeks of growing and growing. Noah today--->>>

These were taken yesterday when Noah tried out the Baby Einstein floor gym.

Noah kicked his little leg and made the gym light up and sing, and just look how happy that lizard looks at his accomplishments.

Little Cutie

2006-03-19T21:38:00.000-08:00

A gift from Aunt Mare - getting Noah ready for his rock n' roll days. He did manage to pee on the outfit within the hour. No offense to Aunt Mare. I like the steamy dookie image on the bum of the outfit. Thanks for the outfit Auntie Mare! I loved Green Day as high school teenager, and their most recen album American Idiot is might good - "punk rock opera" - I'll have to play that for Noah sometime.

There's that car seat again, I caught a sleep smile this time.
Ahh..squeaky clean, this was after a bath in which there was a lot of screaming and crying. Then a bottle, pinks the new black, and a glance of the eyes towards the camera.
I also managed to finish a book the other day. Book Numero 2 - Shopgirl by Steve Martin. I mostly managed to finish it because if was short and to the point, yet managed to have some universal truths as far as love and relationships are concerned. I enjoyed the book, it was funny and odd, and I couldn't help but think that Steve Martin must be a horny old man. Apparently there is a movie out there about the book with Claire Danes and Steve Martin, I'll probably check that out.

I get frustrated with this blog site, seems to take soooo long to upload an image. I'd update more often if I knew I wasn't going to go crazy waiting for this thing to cooperate. Peace!

It's a flying monkey..

2006-03-17T07:31:00.000-08:00

it's a plane...
It super Noah to the rescue for Daddy's Civilization game!!!
A Hero for the next generation.

Happy Saint Paddy's Day! (that other post was from yesterday and my blog decided to be broken)

No Baby Pics

2006-03-16T20:41:00.000-08:00

Sorry. I'm not on the right computer. But I did find this interesting note about Katie Holmes's birthing plans for the TomKat (I know it's stupid just like Bennifer, but catchy like calling South Congress - SoCo) babe. You might wonder what I was doing searching the web for Katie Holmes. Well, I was looking for pictures of pregnant Katies because she looked fat on a clip I saw on Entertainment Tonight or some other trashy show. I am intrigued when famous people get fat, and I've been watching way too much TV.

Anyways, while I was seaching I cam across the article below, and had to chuckle because I went through that whole childbirthing thingamabooper - sorta. I wonder if someone will be able to inform the public if Katie screams for an epidural. Can I get a what-what for the paparazzi?

Also what I learned from a trashy celeb show - there is a store called Bling-Bling Baby, which makes glitzy pacifiers with Swavorski crystals. I like that it's called Bling-Bling Baby, I kinda wish I'd come up with the name. Click for more info on the term Bling-Bling.

New York Daily News - http://www.nydailynews.com Quit yellin', it's
only childbirth

Thursday, October 6th, 2005

Katie Holmes' mission impossible will be giving birth without painkillers - or screaming. That's because her fiancé, "Mission Impossible" star Tom Cruise, is a Scientologist. Practitioners of Scientology are against drugs but insist on "silent birth" because they believe it's traumatic for babies to hear their mothers groan or cry. "Maintain silence in the presence of birth to save the sanity of the mother and the child and safeguard the home to which they will go," church founder L. Ron Hubbard wrote in his best-selling "Dianetics." That's easier to preach than practice. Another famous Scientologist, actress Kelly Preston, told Redbook magazine in 2000 that she screamed for an epidural while giving birth at home to daughter Ella. But her husband, actor John Travolta, who is also a Scientologist, didn't have time to drive Preston to the hospital. "It got hard-core at the end because she was big," Preston said of her 13-hour ordeal. Travolta later described it as a "beautiful, still experience that lovingly brings a child into the world without screaming or talking." Of course, he didn't have the baby. Scientologists also favor seven days of silence for newborns so their first week on Earth is trauma-free. But this has run afoul of state-mandated blood tests, which require at least a pinprick. Corky Siemaszko

Baby Macarena

2006-03-14T08:53:00.000-08:00

I'm 3 weeks old today!!! Gotta dance!
Hey Marcarena!
And some funny facial expressions - looks like he's going yo - g - sippin on boob -
and just hanging with the homies - yo!

Mood Swings

2006-03-11T10:32:00.000-08:00

Little Noah has some serious mood swings.

Peaceful and quiet one moment...and one minute later wailing like a baby banshee.

Strolling

2006-03-06T13:37:00.000-08:00

Today Noah and I went for a walk to the grocery store. He was a good boy and stayed awake the whole time, just watching the world. We also took Noah to the kite festival yesterday, which was incredibly packed with people. There was not a lot of wind thou, at least when we went. So we didn't see many kites. We watched the Oscars last night, which is a treat. It's fun to sit and talk about how awful so and so's dress looks, ie Charlize Theron, or how great a dress looks.

Here's some stroller pictures,
And Noah's favorite thing to suck on: Daddy's fingers. We have learned he needs fingers and a car seat to fall asleep at night - not a pacifiers and cradle kind of kid.