Saturday, May 23, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Funny Things
TJ+ baba ghanoush = love at first taste+ scary diaper. He ate almost our whole plate, and cried if we stopped feeding him.
More and more, this is what I find when I go in to get TJ after a nap:
I've tried telling him that 7 months is WAY too young to be standing, but he doesn't listen.
So this picture makes me laugh so much. This is the dog's bed (don't worry, I clean it all the time now that TJ likes to lay on it *sigh*). The dog lays here almost all day long and stares out the window, watching the passing cars. Lately, TJ keeps crawling onto Chasqui's bed. Chasqui doesn't always like how rough TJ plays, and so runs away from him, leaving TJ to find other entertainment. One day TJ noticed the cars passing outside. He laid on the bed and watched out the window for almost 30 minutes, just like Chasqui does. I laughed everytime I looked over at him.
And while TJ was on his bed, Chasqui found a pillow that had been left on the floor and cozied up. Ha!
Having a dog and a child is not for the fainthearted. It really is like having 2 little kids. What a zoo.
More and more, this is what I find when I go in to get TJ after a nap:
I've tried telling him that 7 months is WAY too young to be standing, but he doesn't listen.
So this picture makes me laugh so much. This is the dog's bed (don't worry, I clean it all the time now that TJ likes to lay on it *sigh*). The dog lays here almost all day long and stares out the window, watching the passing cars. Lately, TJ keeps crawling onto Chasqui's bed. Chasqui doesn't always like how rough TJ plays, and so runs away from him, leaving TJ to find other entertainment. One day TJ noticed the cars passing outside. He laid on the bed and watched out the window for almost 30 minutes, just like Chasqui does. I laughed everytime I looked over at him.
And while TJ was on his bed, Chasqui found a pillow that had been left on the floor and cozied up. Ha!
Having a dog and a child is not for the fainthearted. It really is like having 2 little kids. What a zoo.
Monday, May 18, 2009
It All Started With An Apron
A few weeks ago TJ and I went to a local fabric store looking for cotton knits for diapers. Well, they didn't carry anything that I wanted to make diapers out of, but they did have all sorts of beautiful cotton wovens; I felt the latent sewing-bug stirring to life, and decided I needed to make an apron. I didn't love my first attempt, so had to try again. Much better. But I still had lots of fabric. So I made my niece a reversable smockette:
After a visit to the library provided me with a stack of sewing books, I made a kimono-style robe so I can lounge like a movie star whilst TJ scrubs the floors and cooks me dinner.
But my latest endeavor is probably the one I am most pleased with. Take a look at my pretty bag. I'm especially proud of all the cool little pockets and compartments on the inside. And it's all backed with heavy-weight canvas, so I can pile in all those library books without fear.
But I still have lots of fabric, so....
After a visit to the library provided me with a stack of sewing books, I made a kimono-style robe so I can lounge like a movie star whilst TJ scrubs the floors and cooks me dinner.
But my latest endeavor is probably the one I am most pleased with. Take a look at my pretty bag. I'm especially proud of all the cool little pockets and compartments on the inside. And it's all backed with heavy-weight canvas, so I can pile in all those library books without fear.
But I still have lots of fabric, so....
Sunday, May 10, 2009
That Baby
I don't know if anyone likes seeing pictures as much as we like taking them; but since it's a parent's perogative to believe everything their baby does is adorable and worthy of photographing, we will continue in our endeavors.We've had a good week. We're keeping busy trying to coordinate a move to Oklahoma City (early July), tonsil surgery (last day in June), buying a house (June), along with various other projects. TJ is doing fantastic. He has finally finished cutting his first tooth, is crawling like a pro, and tearing the house apart faster than I can put it back together (I hear this lasts for many many years).
The sight of a naked TJ crawling away from me as fast as he could go was an all too-frequent occurance in our house. Everytime I tried to change his diaper, I'd no sooner get the diaper off then away he'd go, free and happy, sometimes with the sprinkler system running as he went.
Then my sister taught me this handy move:
It's also useful for keeping him from grabbing his bottom and rubbing poop all over before I can get him cleaned up. Wow, this kid is into everything.
Happy Mother's Day to all!
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Baby Food Wars
RANT ALERT. If you wish, you can simply scroll to the bottom to see the pictures of my cute little boy. If you wish to read the rant: I am not a conspiracy theorist. I do not believe Gerber is trying to take over the world. I do think they have seen a market opening and taken it, in a rather brilliant way.
In order for me to be able to quit working and stay home with TJ, we had to make some pretty major cost cuts and hold to a strict budget. So it stands to reason that TJ is on a budget, too. To this end, I have been making all of his baby food; baby food can be prepared at home for anywhere to 3-10 cents per ounce, whereas commercially prepared baby food is anywhere from 28-45 cents per ounce, depending upon brand names, organic, etc, etc. When I first started out on this venture a couple months ago, I was pretty nervous and intimidated. A trip to the library furnished me with all sorts of useful books, and I ground my first batch of baby cereal. I wanted to be very careful about how I made the food, what I used, etc, and so read quite alot. And the more I read, sometimes the more confused I became. One author, a PhD, advocates kiwi as the perfect first food for babies, safe starting at 4 months. Whilst another, a nutritionist, says kiwi is not suitable until at least 9 months of age (by the time I read the later, TJ had already eaten at least 3 kiwis). Introduce egg yolk at 7 months, says one. No, no, not until 10 months, says another. Almost every book had major disagreements from another, and they were all written by educated people. So then I started reading about infant physiology and nutritional needs. Interestingly, the enzymes in an infant's digestive tract are almost identical to an adults by six months of age. So all these bizarre food rules about what to feed a baby and when are driven by... what? The fear of allergies I understand. However, later introduction of a certain food does not lessen the risk of allergies; it DOES ensure an older baby with a larger (read: safer) airway, should an allergic attack occur; all wise things to be aware of if food allergies run in your family, or you suspect allergies or sensitivities in your child. So, since starting at about six months a baby's digestive tract can safely pass almost exactly what an adults' can, the real question should be more along the lines of what foods will supply a baby with the nutritional to meet his needs, not what foods are "safe" (with a few exceptions; there are foods which are more prone to carry infections, which an adults' immune system can more safely handle, and these should be avoided).
So with all this reading and thinking about food and infant feeding lately, I've been pretty aware of food relationships in general: The Kid's Menu at restaurants. Ads for bottled baby food, NOW available with DHA. And the kicker: Gerber has just launched a new line of toddler foods, which are, in essence, TV dinners for 4-year-olds. Their tag-line was something along the lines of "with Gerber, you'll only have to prepare ONE meal (for the adults); Gerber's got you covered with frozen macaroni and cheese for the kids and baby food for the infants". I'm impressed with their marketing. Really, I am. It's brilliant. And I do think Gerber is a fine company. I'm not out to decry their product. But I'm also saddened by the food-relationship babies begin developing in infancy: we feed them highly-processed, highly-refined, fortified, commercial foods their entire infancy. So mom is already used to feeding the baby something different from what the rest of the family is eating. As they get older, the graduate to... Gerber Graduates food. Again, highly-processed, highly-refined commercial foods. In essence, a diet of white bread. Is it any wonder that we have created the culture of the Kid's Menu, where children eat something different from their parents every night? Of course the things on our plate are foreign and unpalatable to them! Of course they want macaroni and cheese, or PB&J for every meal; these are processed, refined commercial foods. It's what they are familiar with, what tastes good to them. It also leads to childhood obesity. The old adage, you are what you eat? A little too true.
So although I began making TJ's babyfood from an economic and environmental standpoint, I'll continue for other reasons as well: it's healthier. It's greener. It's WAY cheaper. it's simple: he eats alot of what I eat. It's SUPER easy, now that the intimidation is gone. No special equipment needed; you DO NOT need the Beaba BabyCook babyfood maker--but Williams and Sonoma will glady sell you one for $150, which you'll then need to keep mineral-free by purchasing only the highest-quality bottled water (never mind that tap water is actually more regulated than bottled water), which Dean and Deluca will gladly sell you. Parenting can cost as much--or as little--as the consumer allows it to cost. Okay, so the excessive consumerism rant is a whole different one, and I'll try to contain myself to one rant at a time.
As TJ gets older and even MORE opinionated, he may throw temper tantrums over eating what we're eating. But for now, while I am in exclusive control of his diet, he's going to eat as much whole, unprocessed, unrefined, local and organic food as possible.
There's a pervasive myth that "it's more expensive to be green". And yet the greenest things I do are primarily driven by the need to cut costs: decrease the power bill by line drying/hang drying as much laundry as possible, cloth diaper, cook for my family, and buy locally. Ah, the irony of it all.
Now, please allow me to sweeten my rant with a few pictures of my beautiful, happy little boy:
TJ's crawling gets better and better every day. He is a super early crawler, becoming mobile before he was 7 months old. Now he's working on standing up holding onto the couch. The standing periods are pretty brief, and I haven't been able to get a picture of one yet, but here he is on his knees, having just stood and fallen back down.
Chasqui has been a bit neglected ever since TJ was born. We recently took him to the dog park to play with his nearly-forgotten doggy-friends. I think TJ had the best time of all. TJ LOVES the dog, so what could be better than a whole park, clear full of dogs? He was so happy that day:
I think Rob was pretty happy, too. Rob loves the dog park, also. What is it with boys and their dogs?
In order for me to be able to quit working and stay home with TJ, we had to make some pretty major cost cuts and hold to a strict budget. So it stands to reason that TJ is on a budget, too. To this end, I have been making all of his baby food; baby food can be prepared at home for anywhere to 3-10 cents per ounce, whereas commercially prepared baby food is anywhere from 28-45 cents per ounce, depending upon brand names, organic, etc, etc. When I first started out on this venture a couple months ago, I was pretty nervous and intimidated. A trip to the library furnished me with all sorts of useful books, and I ground my first batch of baby cereal. I wanted to be very careful about how I made the food, what I used, etc, and so read quite alot. And the more I read, sometimes the more confused I became. One author, a PhD, advocates kiwi as the perfect first food for babies, safe starting at 4 months. Whilst another, a nutritionist, says kiwi is not suitable until at least 9 months of age (by the time I read the later, TJ had already eaten at least 3 kiwis). Introduce egg yolk at 7 months, says one. No, no, not until 10 months, says another. Almost every book had major disagreements from another, and they were all written by educated people. So then I started reading about infant physiology and nutritional needs. Interestingly, the enzymes in an infant's digestive tract are almost identical to an adults by six months of age. So all these bizarre food rules about what to feed a baby and when are driven by... what? The fear of allergies I understand. However, later introduction of a certain food does not lessen the risk of allergies; it DOES ensure an older baby with a larger (read: safer) airway, should an allergic attack occur; all wise things to be aware of if food allergies run in your family, or you suspect allergies or sensitivities in your child. So, since starting at about six months a baby's digestive tract can safely pass almost exactly what an adults' can, the real question should be more along the lines of what foods will supply a baby with the nutritional to meet his needs, not what foods are "safe" (with a few exceptions; there are foods which are more prone to carry infections, which an adults' immune system can more safely handle, and these should be avoided).
So with all this reading and thinking about food and infant feeding lately, I've been pretty aware of food relationships in general: The Kid's Menu at restaurants. Ads for bottled baby food, NOW available with DHA. And the kicker: Gerber has just launched a new line of toddler foods, which are, in essence, TV dinners for 4-year-olds. Their tag-line was something along the lines of "with Gerber, you'll only have to prepare ONE meal (for the adults); Gerber's got you covered with frozen macaroni and cheese for the kids and baby food for the infants". I'm impressed with their marketing. Really, I am. It's brilliant. And I do think Gerber is a fine company. I'm not out to decry their product. But I'm also saddened by the food-relationship babies begin developing in infancy: we feed them highly-processed, highly-refined, fortified, commercial foods their entire infancy. So mom is already used to feeding the baby something different from what the rest of the family is eating. As they get older, the graduate to... Gerber Graduates food. Again, highly-processed, highly-refined commercial foods. In essence, a diet of white bread. Is it any wonder that we have created the culture of the Kid's Menu, where children eat something different from their parents every night? Of course the things on our plate are foreign and unpalatable to them! Of course they want macaroni and cheese, or PB&J for every meal; these are processed, refined commercial foods. It's what they are familiar with, what tastes good to them. It also leads to childhood obesity. The old adage, you are what you eat? A little too true.
So although I began making TJ's babyfood from an economic and environmental standpoint, I'll continue for other reasons as well: it's healthier. It's greener. It's WAY cheaper. it's simple: he eats alot of what I eat. It's SUPER easy, now that the intimidation is gone. No special equipment needed; you DO NOT need the Beaba BabyCook babyfood maker--but Williams and Sonoma will glady sell you one for $150, which you'll then need to keep mineral-free by purchasing only the highest-quality bottled water (never mind that tap water is actually more regulated than bottled water), which Dean and Deluca will gladly sell you. Parenting can cost as much--or as little--as the consumer allows it to cost. Okay, so the excessive consumerism rant is a whole different one, and I'll try to contain myself to one rant at a time.
As TJ gets older and even MORE opinionated, he may throw temper tantrums over eating what we're eating. But for now, while I am in exclusive control of his diet, he's going to eat as much whole, unprocessed, unrefined, local and organic food as possible.
There's a pervasive myth that "it's more expensive to be green". And yet the greenest things I do are primarily driven by the need to cut costs: decrease the power bill by line drying/hang drying as much laundry as possible, cloth diaper, cook for my family, and buy locally. Ah, the irony of it all.
Now, please allow me to sweeten my rant with a few pictures of my beautiful, happy little boy:
TJ's crawling gets better and better every day. He is a super early crawler, becoming mobile before he was 7 months old. Now he's working on standing up holding onto the couch. The standing periods are pretty brief, and I haven't been able to get a picture of one yet, but here he is on his knees, having just stood and fallen back down.
Chasqui has been a bit neglected ever since TJ was born. We recently took him to the dog park to play with his nearly-forgotten doggy-friends. I think TJ had the best time of all. TJ LOVES the dog, so what could be better than a whole park, clear full of dogs? He was so happy that day:
I think Rob was pretty happy, too. Rob loves the dog park, also. What is it with boys and their dogs?
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Eye of the Tiger
I have a brother named Matthew, who is only slightly younger than I. Growing up, we got into all sorts of mischief. Mom always said, "what one mind couldn't think of, the other would". I remember pouring small puddles of dad's aftershave onto the bathroom counter top and lighting it on fire, blowing bubbles in the bathtub, mixing motor oil into mud, and all other sorts of naughtiness. As Matt got older, he turned into more and more of a tease and a tormentor. His favorite game became Eye of the Tiger. Eye of the Tiger was a constant running contest to assess who was the toughest of the contestants. We did the dumbest things to prove our "toughness". Whoever wimped out first was the loser:
- Laying the iron on bare skin, then turning it on
- holding our hands out the windows while driving in a blizzard
- who could run the most laps around the outside of the house barefoot in the winter (keep in mind that I grew up in Idaho)
- laying on the unheated concrete of our unfinished basement
- holding the 50lb bag of rock salt
Virtually anything painful or miserable was bound to become a contest, with Matt yelling "eye of the tiger, eye of the tiger" at us if we even thought about giving up. Family hikes usually featured Matthew devising some new torment to prod the slow ones along, bellowing "eye of the tiger, eye of the tiger" all along the trail.
As I've gotten older, I've developed more and more of an interest in endurance sports, particularly distance running. Maintaining an aggressive running schedule has been a real challenge with a baby. I am so grateful for a good jogging stroller, but still spend all week looking forward to Saturday, the one day I get to leave TJ with Rob and run free. The Saturday run has come to mean so much, that I am willing to run in some pretty wild conditions in order to meet my mileage for the week. Yesterday was one such day. We awoke to pouring rain. I waited and waited, hoping it would let up. It never did, and I finally decided to stop waiting and just go for it. It was by far the worst I've ever run in. I was soaked through before I'd run a quarter of a mile, and when I got home, I had to stand over the sink wringing water out of clothing.
But all along the run, I kept thinking, "Eye of the tiger. Eye of the tiger." Matt would have been proud.
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