Finally a Haircut and the Rocks get Painted

Moby has needed a haircut for a month but I've been putting it off so that her cut is fresh for our trip to Chicago. I finally couldn't wait any longer, since she was having so much trouble listening, I mean seeing. The listening problem has nothing to do with the hair. So, we went to our usual place in the mall where Matt-Matt works for a trim. I didn't have time to wash her hair this morning so when the stylist asked, I said "Yes! I would love it if you would wash my child's hair so I don't have to do it and put up with her whining and screaming over it!!!" Moby was nervous, since if you couldn't tell, she HATES having her hair washed, but she was brave. She had her hands clutched in fists the whole time, but they have a nice table for the kids to lie down on with their heads over the sink and once she realized her face was not going to get wet she was more into it. The cut went fine otherwise and she even got the sparkly hair spray she loves. We stopped by Matt's store to say hi since it was our last chance. Next week he'll be moving to the downtown store, so sad. We will visit him there on occasion, but the free parking and play area in the mall are pretty hard to top.

After naps and quiet time we spent the rest of the day outside, since it was 70 and sunny. Moby has always been into rocks. I mean REALLY into rocks. She has built up quite a collection of "outside" rocks that she will play with, mainly washing and sorting. Today she said she was "painting" them with water so I got the idea to bring out the finger paints and let her go to town on the rocks. She loved it! They actually turned out very cool once they dried.

The Governor

It was a Jade day, so I don't have any stories about the girls to tell. But, I have three new favorite pictures of Devin that I thought I would share, enjoy!

Ant Day

This morning we woke up to about 2000 ants on a long path between a small crack under the front door through the entry, past the stairs, into the kitchen, around my desk and to a spot just under the fridge. Apparently there was something tasty under there, although all I can see is dust bunnies. We took this opportunity to celebrate today as "ant day". We read our ant book, we did experiments with the ants like putting things in their path to see if they would go over or around them, and we called the two aunties, aunt tess and aunt greer, to say "happy ant day!!" We talked a lot about insects and ants in particular. It was a good opportunity for Moby to feel more comfortable with bugs, she's been a little afraid of them lately. We will finish off our day with some ants-on-a-log while we watch the movie "A Bugs Life", which for those unfamiliar, is all about the lives of a group of ants.

Tonight after the girls are in bed I will be getting out the dust buster, filling the hole in the door, scrubbing whatever tastiness is under the fridge and putting out a jar with a boric acid solution to be sure that the rest of our ant experiments happen outdoors this summer.

Another "Make" and a new toy for a steal

Today the "make" was caramels. Morrison was pretty into it, since daddy finally let her stir something on the stove. It is well known that I HATE caramel. Except when Lenny makes it. I actually like the stuff! Wednesday we'll take the booty in to Jades to share.

I spent a few hours at goodwill today, mostly looking for summer clothes for the girls, but I found this toy which retails at $60 and only paid two, yes TWO dollars!! I will MAKE money on it when I sells it on craigslist after Devin is done with it. Found some really cute clothes too....

Pretzels and Pancakes

Today I was working, but daddy was kind enough to photo-journalize their day of pretzel-making. When Matt-Matt and I were kids, we made pretzels on a semi-regular basis with both our mom and our favorite baby-sitter, Marit. So, I suggested it on Friday and daddy thought it would be fun. Morrison is always asking to "make" so he thought it would be the perfect project. They had a ton of fun and made really awesome pretzels. For dinner daddy thought it would be funny to have "breakfast for dinner" so he made omelets, pancakes, bacon and sausage. Morrison got a kick out of it. I call it "recession dinner".

Devin has something to say

Today was a Jade day, so I didn't see the girls much. But, I fed Devin a small bottle and put her down, and she wouldn't settle. She was crying and complaining and I thought she might still be hungry since she doesn't always drink her full 2 bottles at Jades. I made another small one and took it up. When I opened the door she was on her knees looking so desperate and sad. I said "Niesta....." in a reassuring way, and she said, very clearly, "maaaamaaa....."

Devin's first word. This means a lot to me, since Morrison said Dada for MONTHS before she ever said mama, and "mattmatt" shortly followed for her.

Things that make a mama smile.....

Homemade Udon and a Carousel

Yesterday Moby and Daddy spent a better part of the day making Udon noodles from scratch. Moby had her own little batch of flour, kneaded it and put it covered in her own little bowl to sit. Later, she rolled out her little dough ball with her very own tiny rolling pin. Daddy had to cut them, we haven't gotten her the "learning" knife yet, soon soon. Next they hung them from their rolling pins to dry and she helped cook her own noodles separate from the rest. In the end she ate her own noodles while Daddy and Mama shared his. I kept thinking the whole while how lucky she is to have the chance to do this kind of thing with her dad. What a great memory, maybe it will be her first?

Today we headed out for a day at the zoo (along with about 1/2 the city!). We had fun, it was Devin's first trip there. The highlight today was the bald eagle. They have rehabilitated about 60 bald eagles at our zoo, and there is one there now who is flying again. He is getting lots of practice "swooping" in front of us - no glass between us. Moby almost jumped out of her skin when he swooped down in front of her. And for good reason! The bird is about her size!!! At the end of the day we had a little ride on the carousel that the zoo had refurbished and was originally from 1918!!

We will finish off today with a viewing of Moby's (and mommy's) new favorite flick - My Neighbor Totoro, the Japanese animation that was recently dubbed, very well I might add, into English. Check out the trailer on youtube, it's a lovely story and beautifully animated.

Playdate at Roxy's

Today was pretty low-key, but we had a nice playdate with our "oldest" Seattle friends, Roxane and Nadine (Georgia was in school). These are the first friends we had when we moved here, Nadine and Morrison are a month apart. We played together a lot during their first year, while her older daughter was the entertaining preschooler. Now two preschoolers can play while Devin watches.

Floor puzzles and Drawing on the Windows

It was a low key day, since Morrison woke up sick. It's just a cold, Devin is at the tail end of it, but she was pretty miserable all morning. All she ate today was a piece of toast, 2 bananas (not at the same time) and a pile of rice. For those of you who don't know, this is called the BRAT diet without the applesauce. What's funny to me is that these are the things she requested to eat. I wasn't trying to give her the "sick foods." Anyway, the morning was uneventful and then Moby took a THREE HOUR nap!!!! Now, to many of you, this may not seem that strange. There are lots of three year olds out there who nap a few hours every day. But, this is Moby we're talking about. Not only has she not napped in a year, she has only ONCE ever taken a three hour nap and when it she was 5 weeks old. I'm serious. I almost checked to be sure she was still alive but down she came after 3 hours. wow. Anyway, after that and a little Tylenol she felt much better and we decided to put together all three of our rockin' floor puzzles (SO much fun, you should try it!) and then we pulled out the new crayons that color on glass and made some lovely art on all the windows. Well, at least up to 4 feet on all of the windows, or as high as she can reach. Hopefully she'll be feeling better tomorrow.

Best BBQ EVER

At the end of our wonderful day, Matt Matt made what turned out to be the BEST BBQ chicken any of us had EVER had!! I advise you to check out the recipe and repeat as often as possible:

www.lennyfamilyrecipes.blogspot.com/2009/04/chili-rubbed-chicken-with-barbecue.html

Some Art and the Beach

We started off today doing an art project I'd been meaning to get going for a long time. I traced Moby on some paper on the floor and she colored on it. It was tons of fun and she, of course, made her hair purple! She'll be asking to dye it any day now..... She has started asking "body" questions, I have a couple books on my list I need to order soon.

After lunch we headed over to our little local beach, since this is likely the last nice day we're going to have for awhile. It was great to see Moby now able to climb the rocks like a pro and play creatively with the sand. Devin was of course, mystified. Most of her sand grabbing ended in sand eating.

When we got home Matt Matt de-mossed the deck (something you would only understand if you lived in the PNW) and we finally got to the second stage of the playroom make-over. We have been trying to get the playroom in order for months now, and we brought up the futon, bought the first of the toy storage containers and got the filing cabinet out of there. Next I need lots and lots of frames for all the awesome pictures we have from Chris's studio in FP.

Ballet "Recital", a long walk & swings

Today started with a little recital for Moby's ballet class. At the end of every term parents can come observe the class. It's very informal, but fun for us all and gives the little ones a taste of "performing". At the end of the school year they will have a more formal recital in the big room with curtains and all. Lenny was able to go into work late to watch for the first time. He said afterwards in true Lenny fashion "she doesn't like that at all, huh?" After lunch and a nap for Devin we went to our nearby park to walk the long trail and then had a chance to play in the playground a bit too. All around, a lovely day.

Hot Pot

After our lovely day at the tea party yesterday, we stopped at the "Dragon Store", Uwajimaya, and got the fixin's for our new favorite dish, Japanese Hot Pot, or Shabu Shabu. We got Lenny a traditional Donabe and table top stove for his birthday and we've already used it 4 times!

Springtime Hot Pot

Ingredients: (Include as few or as many as you desire)

konbu (dried kelp)
negi (Japanese leek)
shungiku (chrysanthemum leaves)
hakusai (Napa cabbage)
fresh shiitake mushrooms
fresh shimeji mushrooms
fresh enoki mushrooms kuzukiri (arrowroot starch noodles) or thin rice noodles
medium tofu daikon radish (for grating)
ponzu (citrus, soy sauce and vinegar based condiment) beef or pork sliced paper thin (Uwajimaya sells it already sliced and labeled “for sukiyaki” or “for hotpot”) garlic chili sauce, if desired

Preparation:

About two hours before dinner, soak two 2-inch pieces of konbu in a stockpot-full of cold water. About an hour before dinner, soak the kuzukiri noodles in a bowl of cold water. Now grate the daikon radish and cut all the other ingredients into bite-size pieces and artfully arrange on serving plates. Just before dinner, bring the stockpot with the konbu to a simmer -- but don't boil.

To serve:

Place the donabe on a portable burner on the dining table, surrounded by plates of ingredients. Gather your guests around. Arrange the first round of ingredients in the donabe, fill with the konbu broth, cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, serve in bowls, topped with grated daikon and a hit of ponzu and garlic chili sauce. Eat. Repeat.

(This is a fairly traditional Japanese recipe, but I found it on www.japanesefoodreport.com)

Pre-Easter Dino Teaparty and Egg Hunt

Yes, that's right! Our very best friends Sarah, Sylvia & Penelope threw a rockin' Dino-themed tea party complete with an egg hunt in the yard. It was 60 and sunny and we were all lovin' it. Moby finally got to wear a pretty spring dress she has had for a year that until now has been too big. After a quick "tea" and cupcake snack, the girls, Moby, Sylvia & Kalia, headed to the yard to hunt for plastic eggs that each had a little surprise inside. Some contained jelly beans, some chocolate eggs, some stickers and some little dinos! Penelope had fun watching the big girls run around and play while Devin was home sick with daddy :(

A Good Time Was Had by All

The pork was delicious. The slow roasting makes such a difference. Jeff swears that it's all in the wood chips he uses. I think he also has a knack for it. The kids ate it up, the adults ate while standing.... no time to set the table, we were hungry! Salad was served AFTER pork sandwiches. The kids had a lot of fun after dinner running up and down the driveway. Let off some steam and wear them out for bed! Devin, of course, was in bed for most of it. The down side to a 6pm bedtime. Ben and Moby had a nice time watching a show together too. They are downright cozy friends. He is such a sweetie, and they always love to play together. They're the two who sit down with a puzzle while all the other kids run around screaming.

Pulled Pork Day

Today is a good day. Today our friends Shawn and Jeff are bringing over their homemade pulled pork for dinner. (Mar Park!) This is the best pulled pork, Jeff slow cooks it for several hours and his sauce is incredible. He has been posting pictures and updates on facebook all day and I stole that picture of the pork on the grill to show you just how yummy it is! We can't wait!

The Beginning

Hello family and friends!

I've been avoiding blogging about the life of the girls up until now, mostly because I feel that flickr fulfills that role to a certain extent. But! I've had so much fun putting together posts for my work blog that I've decided it's time. My goal is to provide those of you living far away with the opportunity to be flies on the wall in the lives of these two little ones.