Food, Folks & Funnies

Natalie is 4!

2010-12-27T17:15:00.002-05:00

Today is Natalie's 4th birthday! I'm having a great time looking back on pictures of her from one, two, three, and four years ago. I can't get over how much Natalie has grown and changed in these first 4 years of her life. I'm lucky to be her mom.

Duncan Leaks!

2010-12-14T01:06:00.004-05:00

You saw it here first! Today only! Exclusive Duncan family leaks that are downright mortifying. See us like you've never (wanted to) see us before. It's embarrassing! It's scandalous! It's ... delicious! I made Potato Leek Soup for the first time tonight and it was pretty tasty. I've never cooked with leeks before, hence the unnatural excitement and inability to overcome the urge to pun. Please forgive me.

Many thanks to Elise at Simply Recipes for the yummy recipe. My substitutions: I didn't have marjoram, so I used oregano & basil. I pureed the whole soup b/c I didn't like the look of the leek floaties. It made a very thick, satisfying soup with very little fat.

What else do you all make with leeks? Any suggestions?

No Kindle for me, thank you

2010-09-18T17:38:00.003-04:00

I just got A Tree Grows in Brooklyn from the library and began reading it. This passage explains why I can't get into the eReader sensation. (Besides the fact that they cost an arm and a leg.) Here it is, from sweet Francie Nolan's perspective:
"The story of Francois Villon was more wonderful each time she read it. Sometimes she worried for fear the book would be lost in the library and she'd never be able to read it again. She had once started copying the book in a two-cent notebook. She wanted to own a book so badly and she had thought the copying would do it. But the penciled sheets did not seem like nor smell like the library book so she had given it up, consoling herself with the vow that when she grew up, she would work hard, save money and buy every single book that she liked." (p. 25)
I'm thinking A Tree Grows in Brooklyn may be one of those books that just needs to be bought. So far, so good.

Breakfast for Dinner Nirvana

2010-09-17T16:49:00.006-04:00

I think most people who check out my blog come here for the kiddo pics, but I just have to share the details of last night's successful dinner. I just might post a pic of the kids at the end to thank you for making it through my post.

Yesterday I got a loaf of white bread free at the store. What on earth to do with white bread? Ah! French toast! I enjoyed it as a child, but for some reason have never made it since I left home. (Probably because I never have white bread in the house unless someone's throwing up and therefore on the BRAT diet.)

Anyhow, I wanted to make an egg dish to go with the french toast, and I didn't have the right ingredients for any of the usual suspects. So I tried the Puffy Omelet recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook (also where I found my french toast recipe, in case, like me, you actually need a recipe for it).

Omelets make me nervous and never turn out quite right for me, but this one was BAKED and thus much easier. No scary flipping needed. It turned out VERY fluffy, as the name suggests. I wrote the recipe in my Favorite Recipe section of this blog if you're interested.

The kids loved it all. We were wishing we had more of the omelet--I only made one for all 4 of us to share. I increased the eggy goop for the french toast and was thus able to use the entire loaf--we're saving the extra french toast slices in the freezer for a yummy (and easy!) breakfast to come. I loved the smell of the cinnamon and nutmeg in the french toast. Have I mentioned that I'm REALLY excited for fall? I am. Not just the food. Also the crisp, misty weather. But mostly the food.

We had our summer fun, and now let's bring on fall!

There's something I love about a good windy picture.

Natalie helps David eat golf balls when we run out of omelets.

First Day Recap

2010-09-09T16:36:00.003-04:00

Well, Natalie loved preschool! I went with her today, and it was just an hour so she could get acquainted with her teachers and with the classroom. She loved playing with the kitchen food, plates, and utensils. I had to choke down the instinct to push her to play with everything else! She'll get there eventually, right? She also colored a picture, then everyone cleaned up, had snack, listened to a story, and sang "Hello" and "Goodbye" songs. Afterward, she was asked by 3 different people what her favorite part of preschool was, and each time she gave a different answer. I think that's a good sign. It's ALL good!

A photo after her big day.

First day nerves

2010-09-09T02:00:00.003-04:00

The night before school started when I was little (OK, all the way through high school), I would have a tough time sleeping. I'd be just plain excited for the new year! I loved school, and it was so fun to think about my teacher(s), classmates, etc. But I never envisioned that I'd have trouble sleeping the night before my KIDS started school. Yet here I am. Natalie starts preschool tomorrow, and I'm sure that I'm more excited than she is. (I'll probably sleep just fine tonight, though, because I'm a busy mom who finds it hard to resist a good night's sleep on a comfy bed.) Natalie doesn't know what's coming. I have a bit of an idea. I hope she loves it as much as I did.

Our baby boy is 1!

2010-09-08T13:13:00.006-04:00

David celebrated his birthday in fine form yesterday. Note to self: Don't schedule well-child visits for the morning of a birthday party. Particularly those well-child visits that involve 3 immunizations. Poor guy! And then 3 immunizations became 4 because Natalie ended up getting a flu shot as well. Thankfully they recovered well enough to enjoy the festivities that evening. Many of our family members came, and Dave's parents even celebrated with us via webcam.

Singing to the birthday boy

First taste of his cupcake

Loving it! He devoured the cupcake faster than anything I've seen before. We will post the video soon!

One cupcake is not enough.

Bring on a second cupcake, and all is right with the world.

A close-up for Grandma & Grandpa Duncan.

A happy birthday boy!

It is hard to believe David is a year old! But he sure is growing and learning by the day. He took his first few steps last week, and he's talking more and more each day. To close, here's a comparison from birth to now:

Burning questions

2010-08-29T11:46:00.003-04:00

Dave was driving in the car with Natalie the other day, listening to the Mary Poppins soundtrack. We are always listening to the Mary Poppins soundtrack. It keeps Natalie entertained, and there's nothing better than hearing her imitate the old men of the Fidelity Fiduciary Bank. Anyhow, on this particular day, as "A Spoonful of Sugar" played, Natalie said, "Dad?" Then she hesitated for a bit and asked, "Do you have birds sit on your finger?" I love these insights into the workings of a preschooler's mind.

Hello, Chicago!

2009-12-13T21:20:00.002-05:00

Dave had a conference to attend in Chicago at the beginning of December, and we all decided to come with him! We stayed for one night in a hotel, and we learned that road trips and vacations are a whole different ballgame with two kids, even when you're only on the road for 2 hours and only away from home for 2 days. Natalie successfully navigated the hotel's double bed without falling out--phew!--and David slept fairly well in his carseat, which is where he usually sleeps anyway.

We packed in a lot of fun stuff during the day--we visited the Field Museum and the Children's Museum, rode the L Train (EL Train?), and we ate Chicago-style pizza. Natalie loved the train. Her excitement was so contagious that she even made the tired commuters smile. How can you not smile when a cute 3-year-old (no bias here) in a bright pink coat says "Whee!" everytime the train starts moving, and repeats the names of the stops as she hears them over the intercom?

We don't actually have pictures from our favorite part of the Chicago Children's Museum. It was an indoor snowball fight, complete with white puff balls the size of golf balls and snowflake-shaped cardboard cutouts you could stack to create barricades. We had such a blast, and we weren't freezing cold afterward. Fine family entertainment!

Kitchen helper

2009-12-13T20:57:00.002-05:00

Here's Natalie getting more mileage out of her Wisconsin tee. This time she's helping me roll out sugar cookie dough. As you can see, this is a full-body effort.

Ah, my favorite sight! Natalie & Dave working side by side in the kitchen. Natalie loves doing the dishes so much that she cries if we won't let her help. Here's hoping we can keep the dishes excitement coming when she's in high school.

Daddy-daughter date

2009-12-13T20:47:00.003-05:00

Dave & Natalie love riding the bus to the Madison Children's Museum. Here they are, all decked out in UW regalia, ready for a fun day together. Thanks, Mom, for the fun tee shirts!

Smiling baby

2009-12-05T22:46:00.002-05:00

These days David loves laying on the floor and ... smiling! Baby smiles are the best.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-09T21:08:00.008-05:00

This Halloween we ended up pairing up Dave and David as Batman and Robin, and Natalie and I were Cinderella and her fairy godmother.

Wham! Zowie! The Dynamic Duo is back in action! After I found the idea for this Robin costume online, I was really happy that Dave was willing to play along as Batman. Aren't they cute?

As we read in the previous post, all of Natalie's dreams came true when this dress arrived at our house. I was really excited at the prospect of spraying my hair silvery gray! The only difficulty I had was convincing Natalie that the magic wand is for the fairy godmother, not Cinderella.

Cinderella, dreaming of all the candy that's sure to come her way:

Robin, who has no idea what's going on but looks adorable nonetheless:

Grace and toys go!

2009-10-19T00:07:00.003-04:00

Natalie's new obsession is Cinderella 3. I'm normally pretty opposed to movie sequels, especially straight-to-video-Disney movie sequels. But when that sequel keeps my daughter entertained for a good 45 minutes or so and allows me to maintain my sanity, I can make an exception.

Natalie's got a terrific arsenal of quotes from the movie. One of her "quotes" is, "Grace and toys go!" Translation: "Grace and poise, girls." (Spoken by the Stepmother as she's trying to keep Anastasia and Drizella in line. If you knew that without having to read this explanation, call me. I'm sure there's a lot we can sympathize about.) Anyway, when she says this, it cracks Dave and me up, so she says it more. And more. There are also some great quotes like, "I DO! I dooooo. I do..." and "Whatever you do, stay away from the palace. Stay away from the prince!" It's a little disturbing when your toddler has a terrific menacing voice.

In keeping with the Cinderella theme at our house, Natalie decided she wants to be Cinderella for Halloween. My sister lent us a Cinderella outfit and it arrived in the mail on Saturday along with some new (sparkly!) shoes from Grandma. Putting on the dress elicited more quotes from Natalie: "Mommy, Daddy, all my dreams have come true!" and "They're the perfect shoes!" Needless to say, we're pretty excited for Halloween. Here's a sneak peek:

Back in Action

2009-10-17T22:07:00.009-04:00

We're slowly but surely adjusting to life as a family of four. This past Sunday we went to church for the first time since David's birth. It turned out that the heat wasn't working in the chapel, and it was a cold, cold day, so our bishop cancelled all the meetings after the first hour (for those not familiar with LDS services, church is typically 3 hours long). It was kind of a nice way to ease back into the going-to-church routine. For everyone except Natalie. After sitting in Sacrament Meeting for an hour, she was more than ready to go to Nursery for the next 2 hours, and she flatly refused to leave the building. Dave carried her to the car, and she cried the whole way. Here's a post-church photo op, with David crying in his cute first day of church outfit, Natalie with her tears all dried (happy to be holding her beloved Sally, no doubt), and me already in my post-church comfy clothes.

Along with attending church again, we've resumed some other activities that for the past month or so were not happening much, if at all. Like hairbrushing! OK, hair-doing. Natalie's hair has been brushed every day (almost), and sometimes I would put in a quick hairband, but when the hairband invariably came out a few minutes later, there was no redo. But now we've jumped into pigtail territory, and there's no looking back! My mom put Natalie's hair in pigtails while she was here helping us, and my goal is to one day do pigtails for Natalie that are ALMOST as perfectly formed as the ones my mom would create.

Grandma's Pigtails

Mommy's Pigtails

We've ventured out several times for walks, hikes, and bus rides, and most trips have gone really smoothly. David tends to sleep in the Baby Bjorn, which works well for us. Here's a photo of him after our trip out to State Street on Friday evening. It was cold, so we bundled him in his reindeer sleeper, and the poor guy was so bundled that he reminded us of Ralphie's little brother Randy in A Christmas Story--you know, when the mom says to him, "You can put your arms down when you get to school!"

David, snoozing after a ride in the Bjorn

Here's Randy. See, David, it could have been worse!

Welcome, David!

2009-09-11T23:16:00.003-04:00

David Carlson Duncan was born on Monday, September 7, 2009, at 10:40 a.m. He weighed 8 lbs 2 oz and was 20 inches long. We're thrilled to have him here with us 10 days earlier than expected!

We're soaking up all the newborn baby snuggle time we can.

So far, Natalie is fond of her new brother and she treats him very lovingly. Except his crying freaks her out. But for the most part, she seems to think he's pretty fun. The first thing I remember her saying about David is, "He's squeakin! Squeak, squeak!"

The Quotable Natalie

2009-08-08T14:46:00.003-04:00

"Mommy, there are bugs in the salad dressing."

Natalie is forever telling us about bugs and spiders she's found, and it never fails to freak us out for a second or two before we realize that the spiders are empty grape stems from lunch or the bugs are actually bits of fuzz on the carpet. Or, in this case, poppyseeds. I ate some of the alleged bugs to show Natalie they were OK. When I see her popping a june bug in her mouth someday, I'll probably realize I didn't make the best choice.

Rochester to Madison Roadtrip

2009-08-02T23:48:00.007-04:00

We stopped in some great places on our way to Madison. And I use the phrase "on our way" loosely. Philadelphia & DC are not generally on the way west of Rochester. But we'd wated to see these places for a long time, and we finally took the opportunity!

Highlights:
Getting used to seeing minutemen and other period folks all over in Philadelphia. We actually bumped into a minuteman on the way out of our elevator at the hotel parking lot. We were too surprised to request a photo op, so we settled for a pic with a cardboard cutout of Ben Franklin. I, for one, would have loved to have an "interactive breakfast" with him as advertised, but unfortunately our itinerary didn't allow it.

Seeing the coins made at the US Mint. I didn't realize how much they rely on robotics to turn the huge rolls of metal into coins. Sorry, no photos allowed here!

Viewing the Liberty Bell as well as period copies of the Constitution, the Articles of Confederation, and the Declaration of Independence. Standing in the room where the Declaration of Independence was signed. Dave and I had some great preparation for this--we watched 1776 the musical! (Sing with me, "He plays the violin...." or how about, "Sit down, John!")

Checking out the memorials on the National Mall in Washington, DC. I won't lie to you--it was hot and humid and I was exhausted most of the time, but I am so glad we saw DC. There was so much to see; we just hit the tip of the iceberg. I would like to spend a couple weeks. Or a month. I would go to every museum, and it wouldn't be June, and I wouldn't be pregnant.

We love the Smithsonian! We had to restrain ourselves from asking the guards when Ben Stiller's shift began.

Meeting up with Dave's friend Kelly who lives in DC. We had a great visit with him, and he did an excellent job of helping us navigate the public transportation, and teaching us what was realistic. Sample, "Julie, you don't want to walk all the way to the Jefferson Memorial. Trust me." He was right. We drove.

Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknowns. This was the most moving experience of the trip for me. I felt such intense pride and gratitude as we walked along the memorials of all the soldiers who sacrificed so much for my freedom.

Just love this pic. I especially like that Natalie's smile occurred spontaneously. I think my cheesy grin in most of the other Julie-Natalie photos comes from the fact that I'm saying between my teeth, "Smile, Natalie!!"

Fallingwater was amazing. It was such a beautifully designed house. The only disappointment about this was that we arrived too late for both of us to take the tour (we were planning to go separately b/c no kids Natalie's age are allowed). Dave let me go b/c he knew how much it meant to me, and every time I think of the visit I appreciate him so much for that.

Our tradition is to buy a Christmas tree ornament as a souvenir wherever we travel. I can't wait to put up our tree this year and be reminded of this terrific trip!

Happy (Moving) Birthday to Dave!

2009-07-22T23:20:00.004-04:00

Dave's birthday was June 20th, and we moved to Wisconsin on June 25th. So how do you celebrate someone's birthday when your life and house are in disarray and you're moving within the week? Take photos with moving boxes in the background, and go to Strong Museum! Normally Dave wouldn't request a trip to the children's museum for his birthday, but preferences change quickly when the museum is running an exhibit called Videotopia that allows visitors to play 100 different arcade video games. Dave was happy that he left the high score on a few different machines, and Natalie was happy that there was a monster-sized foot stool that enabled her to play too!

Oh, and we sold our red car (possibly the last vestige of my young, free and single days--sniff!) late in the evening on Dave's birthday. Quite a birthday present! We had to sell it before we left town, and clinching the sale made us feel like we could really complete the move. Phew!

An acquired taste?

2009-07-21T23:40:00.007-04:00

A week or two before leaving Rochester, I saw this bumper sticker and it cracked me up. We definitely acquired a taste for Rochester during the nearly 5 years we lived there--we especially miss the terrific friends we made.

I certainly never expected to acquire a taste for one thing--Rochester's famous dish, the garbage plate. For the uninitiated, this involves 2 hamburgers (or hot dogs) covered with home fries and macaroni salad and smothered in hot sauce & onions. We heard garbage plate lore from our first days in Rochester, and we decided we couldn't leave town without sampling one for ourselves. Just before moving, we ate lunch at the home of the original garbage plate, Nick Tahou's. What a surprise to discover that we actually enjoyed them! It was like our own Green Eggs & Ham moment. Too bad we waited until our last week in town to try them out!

Here is the evidence of our bravery:

Rochesterians, please eat a garbage plate and think of us!

Taking a bite out of Wisconsin

2009-07-21T23:06:00.003-04:00

Here we are, safe and sound in our new home! I will post pics from our road trip soon, if I can find some where I don't look like an overheated, exhausted pregnant lady! (We had a lot of fun, I promise.)

In the meantime, here's a photo of Natalie's desperate attempt to eat on move-in day. I was very late preparing lunch, and when I left the cheese unattended to grab the bread, Natalie siezed the moment. I turned back and the block of cheese had one large bite out of each end ;) It made me burst out laughing.

I'm sorry to say this was not fine Wisconsin cheddar; it was the nearest grocery store's cheapest option. Obviously it didn't faze Natalie.

Zooropa

2009-05-31T15:30:00.002-04:00

OK, so sometimes I get a bit too creative (desperate?) with these blog post titles. According to The Hurst Review, "part of Zooropa’s message is that surfaces can be deceiving, and this song cycle is much more than meets the eye." Which is a terrific metaphor for this post. Chew on that awhile!

Natalie and I go to the zoo a lot, but this was Dave's first trip to the Seneca Park Zoo. Here's Natalie watching the sea lion go up for a breath of fresh air:

It doesn't get much better than happening upon a real-life baboon snuggle session.

A great picture of Natalie. Unfortunately I wasn't quite looking at the camera. Most likely I was distracted by the paparazzi.

Lilacs, etc

2009-05-31T15:09:00.006-04:00

May is the month of lilacs in Rochester, so I thought I'd better post these before it becomes June! We wandered around Highland Park the week before the Lilac Festival began. Though the lilacs weren't fully in bloom yet, it was still a fun family night walk.

As you can see, Natalie is a full-contact flower sniffer. She doesn't like to do things just halfway.

Down and gimme 50!

Of course, the pregnant lady is bound to see the photo op in a tree seat. Anything for a little break!

And here's a random one I couldn't resist posting. Natalie's showing off her latest style: pioneer chic. That's right, Mason jar bangle bracelets. She's fearless that way.

Yay Dave!!

2009-05-25T15:12:00.006-04:00

Dave graduated on Saturday the 16th at the Eastman Theatre. Our family and a couple of close friends came to celebrate with us, and we had a terrific time together.
Here's a couple shots of Dave with his hood:

The whole family (except Dave's brother Chris, our dedicated photographer):

Just the 3 of us:

Dave and his parents:

Dave and his siblings (and Natalie):

Thanks, Chris, for all the great photos you took! We'll have to make sure you're in front of the camera more frequently at your graduation in July :)

Hikers

2009-04-26T17:32:00.003-04:00

The weather was so beautiful yesterday that we decided to go for a little hike. I was glad that Dave was up for this plan, because he had just gotten off of a red-eye flight from Tucson to Rochester via LA and Chicago. (By the way, Dave is now good friends with the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Just ask him for details!) But back to the hike. We went to Powder Mills Park in Pittsford, and took their Daffodil Trail. It was an easy, short hike, and the best part was having a snack in the field of daffodils near the end of the trail.

But if you ask Natalie, she'll probably say that her favorite part was riding "on Daddy's legs." Also known as riding in the baby backpack. She had a great view and didn't have to negotiate her way among the roots and branches on the ground.

We saw that there was a fish hatchery at the park as well, and we decided to take a look at the trout there. We paid a quarter to feed them something that looked and smelled like cat food, and I couldn't believe what a show they put on while they were eating it!

Also, we saw the craziest house at the park! Dubbed the Mushroom House, this looks like it's straight out of the Shire. We expected to see some Hobbits pop out at any moment. All in all, a fun outing on a gorgeous day!

Rise and Shine

2009-04-23T08:51:00.004-04:00

Wow, look who's posting twice in less than 12 hours!

As you can see in the photo, Natalie's crib has become quite crowded in recent days, because of all the babies she likes taking to bed with her. One afternoon, when she wasn't falling asleep for her nap, I came in and she made an unusual request: "I need Chick Hicks!" So I gave Natalie her little green race car and she slept soundly.

Anyway, I came into Natalie's bedroom this morning to answer her request for more water and this is what I saw:

When I grabbed the camera to take a picture, Natalie instructed her babies to "give a smile!"

A side note for anyone wondering about the backward sleep sack Natalie's wearing, it's the easiest way we've found to keep her diaper on all night long ;)

It's a Boy!

2009-04-22T22:47:00.003-04:00

We had a prenatal ultrasound today and learned we are having a baby boy! The sonographer said he looks healthy, which we are grateful for. It was so fun to see his head, face, heart, toes, everything! After months of telling Natalie she will have a little brother or sister, we told her after the ultrasound that she is going to have a little brother, and she promptly filled in, "...or sister." We think she'll figure it out eventually. After the ultrasound we went to the mall and picked an outfit for little David. Ok, two. We couldn't choose between these:

I wish I was a fish

2009-03-10T22:42:00.003-04:00

As promised, here are photos! Natalie is sporting her new fish towel. She loves watching fish "swimming in da water," and now she gets to be one after every bath! I tried to get a better shot of what the towel actually looks like, but Natalie is just about as wiggly as a fish. When you combine that with her constant desire to be touching the camera or some other piece of technology, I figure was lucky to get the shots I did!

24 hours in the life of...

2009-03-08T20:35:00.007-04:00

Friday-Saturday was so crazy I couldn't think of any healthy way to cope besides blogging about it. Here goes: We went to a friend's house for game night on Friday, and Dave and I played tag team (in between stints at Guitar Hero) trying to catch Natalie in her various shenanigans. These included snagging the entire bag of cheese puffs and going for broke, eating her weight in strawberries, floating dog food in the dog's water dish, and dialing random phone numbers on my friend's cordless phone. We're hoping she didn't call the Dominican Republic or anything. We'll see when the bill comes.

On Saturday morning, we ate breakfast and then walked Dave to work because it was so warm out. Natalie was all excited to "play in the water" on the way back--there's a little muddy stream with a bridge--so she wore her pink rain boots and had a great time splashing around and throwing sticks in the water. Then she made the mistake of leaning over to grab a stick while she was on an incline, and she went head over tea kettle and landed flat on her back in the water. I was standing a foot away from her, but couldn't get my hands or brain to work fast enough to help. (It's funny how I always go through these scenarios in my head of dangerous hypothetical situations and how I would save Natalie from some terrible thing by sprinting across the room, all the while maintaining my balance and speaking to her in a soothing motherly tone. Situations like this make me realize that's not so realistic.) Anyhow, I picked her up out of the water and brushed the leaves and dirt out of her hair, and we headed for the house. Of course she was wearing only a sweatshirt and jeans, so she was completely soaked. But that didn't stop her from requesting a ride on the swing set as we passed it. (Request denied!) So apparently, she was not badly wounded. This is why I didn't feel too terrible for stifling a few snickers as I thought back about what had just happened.

We got inside the house and I stripped Natalie down for a bath. This was one of those "run the water, hose child down, drain water, remove silt from tub, and refill" kinds of baths. She had a great time with her toys, and recovered nicely from the experience. For the last day she has been reminding us frequently, "Nat-o-lie fall down in water. Muddy water. Boots." It's pretty cute.

So once she was clean and dry, I decided to take a shower myself. I suggested that Natalie look at some books and do puzzles. (Yeah right.) But this wouldn't be the post that it is if she had taken my suggestion. Natalie popped in on me a couple times while I was showering to say Hi, and then I asked for some privacy and she left. When she didn't come back for awhile I knew something was up. I found Natalie in the kitchen. She'd pulled a chair up to the counter, and she was plucking grapes from the fruit bowl, dipping them in the dregs of the waffle batter from earlier that morning, and eating them!!! Disgusting! Oh, and drinking from a sippy cup of milk that had been in the sink (waiting to be cleaned for about a day). I have learned from this experience that I need to do my dishes more often. Probably for that to happen, I need a dishwasher.

Long post, no pics. Sorry. Will post some soon!

Future firefighter

2009-01-31T23:21:00.003-05:00

Natalie and I had a great time touring the fire department yesterday. She loves fire trucks, and getting to climb inside one was a pretty exciting thing. I was amazed to learn that I can stand up straight inside a fire truck. Those things are huge! Natalie left with her own firefighter's hat, and she was in 7th heaven.

Suddenly Two

2009-01-30T16:25:00.006-05:00

Natalie celebrated her 2nd birthday 2 days after Christmas. A few days later I looked at her and thought, where did my baby go? She is adorable, and she is definitely a little girl now. Although she's still my baby, she's not a baby. Anyway, enough of the semantics. She is growing! She has more hair. She has more personality. She rides a trike. It is so exciting to see her grow up! This is Natalie at age 2, age 1, and as a newborn.

Hooray for my advent calendar!

2008-12-14T19:33:00.005-05:00

So about a week before Thanksgiving I decided to bite the bullet and make an advent calendar. I finally finished it this week. Not by December 1st like I had hoped, but I'm really happy with how it turned out! I got the idea from this one in the Pottery Barn Kids catalog, but it was $69. I decided that with a few dollars of felt and some blood, sweat, and tears, I could make my own. I'm relieved to see that the PBK advent calendar is simply "No Longer Available"--my big worry was that by the time I finished making my own, the real mccoy would be marked down to $9.99 or something. So anyway, here is the finished product!

I would like to embroider our last name on the bottom of the tree, but I'll probably wait until after Christmas to do that. Realistically, I'll probably do it on November 30th 2009 ;)
Now I just need to figure out what to put in the pockets. I popped a piece of candy in each pocket, but I had envisioned putting in something Christmas-y too. Any ideas?

Top 10 reasons I love Christmas with a toddler

2008-12-13T15:09:00.009-05:00

10. She's willing to trek through the mud and cold to cut down a Christmas tree, as long as she gets to wear her beloved snow pants.

9. All of our ornaments are on the top 2/3 of our Christmas tree. And it's wedged between two couches for protection. All of the candy canes on our Christmas tree have been sucked on--through the plastic wrappers.

8. She still gets Santa and snowmen confused. I have to say I'm enjoying the lack of comprehension (or expectation) that tons of toys are coming her way.
7. The reindeer in the mall are the coolest thing ever! And all large, nondescript animals are hereby reindeer. The moose on our Yellowstone Christmas ornament? Definitely reindeer.
6. She doesn't care that I just finished the Advent calendar this week.
5. She's old enough to help us find the toys she'll like for Christmas, but young enough to forget about them once I hide them!
4. She doesn't realize my bedroom is full of poorly hidden, unwrapped Christmas presents.
3. Snow is popular in our house again. How can we help it when we hear, "Ooh, it's snowing!" (Whether it's snowing or not. Snow on the ground is close enough to "snowing"!)
2. I get to dress her up like Mrs. Claus! (Or is Miss Claus more appropriate? Or Ms. Claus? Elfette? You get the idea.)

1. We get to experience the joys of trying to wrestle Natalie down AND make her smile for the camera while wearing festive holiday attire so we can have a happy Christmas picture for posterity.

Snoozer

2008-11-16T21:15:00.004-05:00

Dave took a great sleeping photo of Natalie...

and it reminded me of a photo of her wrapped up in the same blanket when she was just 2 months old.

How time flies. In some ways, it's hard to believe this is the same person! What a difference 18 months makes.

Double dipping

2008-11-14T15:02:00.003-05:00

Natalie's new favorite food is ketchup! We gave her some with french fries recently and she didn't really eat the french fries; she just sucked the ketchup off them over and over. After awhile she realized she could get at the ketchup easier if she scooped it into her hands. When finished (with the ketchup, not the fries) requested "more kapsups." Hmmm. Ketchup is pretty much tomatoes and sugar, so this isn't the most nutritionally balanced choice, but I figure it's like giving her a piece of Halloween candy with a (tiny) dose of vitamin C! And does it really make sense to insist that she finish her french fries first?

We've discovered that ketchup isn't her only dip of choice. Barbeque sauce (the chicken fingers are an afterthought), gravy (minus the mashed potatoes), and jelly (licked off the bread) are also pretty highly ranked. The other night we were in a Mexican restaurant and Natalie requested more chips and salsa the whole time.

I've heard people suggest that kids are more likely to eat food if they can dip it in something. I just never expected Natalie to eat this dip by the handful.

Fall fun at the pumpkin patch

2008-11-11T22:20:00.007-05:00

Last month we went to the pumpkin patch and we discovered a pumpkin patch where pumpkins are just the tip of the iceberg. I think Natalie could have been content to watch this train all day long.

When it came to riding the toddler train, Natalie was interested, but a little apprehensive, so the guy in charge of the ride let me get on with Natalie.

This was my favorite part--and as you can see from the look on Natalie's face, she was pretty excited about it too. Natalie got to pick an apple from a wooden tree. How funny is that? I snapped this pic right before she took a bite out of the apple. No need for washing when you get them directly from the great outdoors!

I couldn't resist posting this sequence of 3 photos taken during her time on the swingset.

How tall this fall? Not quite 3 feet.

And finally, bring on the pumpkins! In case you're wondering, we chose the pumpkin in the first photo.

As a note to any local people who read this blog, if you ever go to Wickham Farms in Penfield, go inside the store and check out the "mouse hole" by the cash register. It's decked out well enough to make Jack and Gus-Gus jealous!

To bee or not to bee

2008-11-11T15:49:00.007-05:00

At long last, Halloween photos! And here's the story behind them. I made Natalie a bumblebee costume for Halloween. I decided on a bumblebee because she likes bees--she has a couple of books about bees and they are definite favorites. Also, this seemed like an easy costume to put on--she wouldn't likely freak out, because it's basically a dress with an optional hat, right? Wrong. Unfortunately, despite my best overanalysis, I didn't have a willing bumblebee on my hands.
Dave and I learned this the hard way on the night of our church Halloween party, one week before Halloween. Natalie flatly refused to wear the costume, even when she saw the other kiddos all dressed up. So then I tried a shameless bribe: "There's candy for all the bumblebees over there." She answered with a hysterical "Noooooo!"
So for the next week I tried to resign myself to the fact that Natalie might not dress up, and life would go on. She could just help us pass out candy, and that would be fine. But on Halloween afternoon, I wanted to go visit our old neighbors and I decided to give the bee costume one last attempt. And though she protested (a lot) as I put the costume on, once it was on she acted like it wasn't that big of a deal. I decided to consider this a success, and she stayed in the costume for car rides, nap time, and dinner time. She didn't protest, and I wasn't taking any more chances with that on and off business. Here she is, all ready to say "Trick or Treat!" Or simply, "Treat," which is how she preferred to say it.

And here she is after the fact, laden down with goodies. Her little pumpkin is so heavy it's dragging on the ground.

At our new apartment, we get so many trick-or-treaters (about 150-175) that we just sat on the porch with the candy bowl. No sense in closing the door and going back inside. And since most of them are quite young, we were done by 7:30! It was great fun. Natalie is loving her candy--she calls the Raisinets beans, and she enjoys rubbing the Dum-Dums up and down her arms. And Dave & I are trying unsuccessfully to avoid filching too much of her candy.

A cute pair

2008-10-14T14:43:00.003-04:00

This was a fun photo I snapped of Natalie & Dave. She's bundled up in a cozy fleece from Grandma and Grandpa Duncan :)

...and she is done posing. Good thing I grabbed a photo while I could!

Ferris Bueller, you're my hero

2008-10-14T14:36:00.002-04:00

Dave was having fun with Natalie in the tub. Bonus points for spotting the picture with the neck goobers :) Oh, yikes, I just realized she has armpit goobers too. I guess this is what bath time's for, right? Getting rid of the remnants of the day....

Vegetable harvest

2008-10-14T14:31:00.004-04:00

So we've sold our condo and moved into graduate student housing. We were grateful to have a chance to harvest almost all of our tomatoes before moving. We left the still-growing grape tomatoes in the garden, so hopefully the new owners of our condo enjoyed them.

As the picture shows, Natalie is fascinated by tomatoes. But this does not extend to actually swallowing them. She probably took hundreds of bites out of tomatoes this summer (many of which were green grape tomatoes she'd plucked from the vine--yuck!), but I think she spit every bite out.

Fun on the farm

2008-10-14T14:02:00.005-04:00

We took Natalie to Springdale Farm the first weekend in September. (Thank goodness for automatic date stamps on our photo filenames, otherwise I'd have no idea when these were taken!) She loved getting to know the animals in the petting zoo.

And then she found the tractor, and it was love at first sight.

Even after we took her over to another part of the petting zoo, she kept heading over to the tractor and trying to climb back up. Once she'd seen the tractor, her only thought was to get back onto it.

Niagara Falls birthday

2008-09-10T16:49:00.005-04:00

We spent my birthday at Niagara Falls. It was great! We saw the falls up close and we got misted a lot!

Natalie pushing her stroller.

We got soaked, but it was sure fun!

Just had to get a shot in our matching ponchos :)

Natalie enjoys trying on my sunglasses. It's not so easy to keep them on, but she gives it a noble effort.

Summer fun

2008-09-10T16:01:00.002-04:00

I've got tons of stories to catch up on from the past few weeks. This summer we sold our condo (it was on the market for 7 days--crazy!), visited our family in Seattle, attended my 10-year high school reunion, and the adventures continue.
We're madly picking all the tomatoes we can before we move. We've had lots of fun with our garden. The best part for me has been having too many grape tomatoes to eat! I never knew that was possible.
Here are some photos from our Seattle trip. Enjoy!

More about moving

2008-07-29T11:51:00.005-04:00

I just realized I haven't really explained why/when we are moving. Here goes. Dave is expecting to finish school next year, possibly in May, so we're selling our condo and looking for a place to rent until he graduates and we find out where he gets a job. Rochester friends, if you know of any 2 bedroom rentals in the area, please let us know!

Our condo and veggies are on the market!

2008-07-29T10:58:00.008-04:00

After about a month and a half of primping and painting, we're ready to sell. Now's the time to see if someone's ready to buy. And it's the time to clean, clean, clean like nobody's business so our house can be ready to show at a moment's notice. I am not exactly Martha Stewart, and she doesn't have an 18-month-old, so thankfully our realtor has promised to give us overnight notice whenever possible. Though it's a lot of pressure to keep our home super-clean and super-organized, it sure is nice living in such a tidy place!

So we're wondering how long it'll be on the market. Will we get to reap the harvest of our vegetable garden, or will somebody else? Speaking of which, I should post an update on the veggies. The last pics came just after we planted them. They are now huge!

Cucumber, zucchini, and squash, 1 of each. So we learned this year that we need to devote more space to these plants next time around!Actually, pretty much all our plants need more space next time.

We planted the big tomatoes in planter boxes that are similar to Earth Boxes. Our friend Kay Dodds found the instructions online, modified them to suit his needs, and helped us make them. We can't wait to use more of these planter boxes next year!

4 pepper plants--we can't remember all the varieties b/c Natalie loves pulling up the white markers. We're pretty sure we have one red pepper and 2 green peppers, and we're positive that there's one banana pepper. I transplanted the 2 peppers on the left--they used to be dwarfed by the tomato plants and they weren't thriving. Hopefully they will take hold. Our 6 grape tomato plants are on the right. I love grape tomatoes, and I can't wait for them to ripen!

Our basil, which we've already used once for pesto. Yummy! I was amazed how fast the new leaves grew in after I plucked the plants. In this pic, you can see my reflection in the window AND you can see a couple of our grape tomatoes ripening on the windowsill :)

I can't wait to see this tomato ripen and then EAT IT!!

Dave gets giddy every time he sees this plant. He loves pickled banana pepper slices on sandwiches. Anyone know how to pickle banana peppers? We found a recipe online, but if you've got a recipe that's tried and true, we'd prefer to use it!

Happiness is ... a visit from Grandma

2008-07-20T15:43:00.004-04:00

My mom came to visit us in June. It was SO great to have in-person hugs and for Natalie to have a chance to bond with her Grandma Carlson (the chocolate-covered raisins from Grandma sped that along nicely). Here are just a few photos from our week together. Lots of the week was spent with my mom watching Natalie while Dave & I fixed things up around the house and packed extra stuff (which we have a lot of) into a storage unit.

Where have I been?!?

2008-07-20T15:39:00.003-04:00

Wow, over a month and no posts! I have been missing blogging a lot lately--we've been busy getting our condo ready to put on the market. But lots of fun stuff has happened too! So now I'll take some time to chronicle a few of our recent adventures and the photos to go with them. Enjoy!

Beloved

2008-06-11T11:59:00.004-04:00

I just finished reading this book, and I can't stop thinking about it, so I thought I'd blog about it.
Beloved by Toni Morrison

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was an emotionally difficult book to read, but I felt that it was important for me to read it, and I am glad I did. Before reading this book I believed I already understood the injustice of slavery, but this book made me think about slavery, particularly its after-effects, in a way that hit home much more than any textbook or classroom discussion ever has. This book puts a human face on the struggles that are otherwise too easily forgotten. What touched me the most was the plight of a mother to protect her children from slavery, which she knew to be a fate worse than death.

Make yourself a dang quesadilla!

2008-06-06T22:26:00.004-04:00

Natalie's lunch of choice (well, I guess it's my choice) is the quesadilla. Simple and easy, and I just discovered how amazing they turn out when I heat them in a cast-iron skillet! Lately, Natalie enjoys peeling her quesadilla wedges apart. She always eats the cheese, and only sometimes eats the tortilla. Perhaps she's intent on living a low-carb lifestyle. That would explain why she licks the butter off her slices of bread, or tries to bite the bread in such a way that she maximizes butter and minimizes bread intake.
But back to the repetitive lunches. Do any of you seasoned lunch makers or lunch eaters have ideas for a toddler lunch food besides the magic quesadilla? We're trying to avoid giving her peanut butter until she's 2; otherwise PB&J would be my preference.

Jeans quilt--finished!

2008-06-06T22:13:00.003-04:00

Hooray! My bluejean quilt is done. We've used it a few times and I love it! I made it really big so we can use it for picnics and have lots of space. I'm glad I didn't make it any bigger than it is, because it weighs a ton! I've included a photo of the quilt in progress--the squares are sewn into strips. (I'm on the blanket to show its size and to show how nicely my pants blend into the blanket!) The other one is the finished product.

How will our garden grow?

2008-06-06T21:49:00.005-04:00

We planted our garden last Friday! We've got grape tomatoes, various peppers, squash, zucchini, and cucumber. And we have some big tomatoes we still need to plant. Mysteriously, one of the cucumber plants has vanished. Only a string is left. It was pretty sickly just after we planted it, so I guess it's not a big loss. I'm hoping to replace it with an eggplant, but our local garden center is sold out. We also have dill, a few plants I'm growing from seeds, and strawberries a friend gave us. Here's photos of our little plants. Hopefully this post isn't too boring; I just think it's so fun to see these things growing! Last year we were amazed by how our tomatoes took off, so we expanded things this year, and I'm dreaming of the fresh veggies to come.... I added a photo of Natalie filching tulip bulbs. I thought only rabbits did that!

Recovery time

2008-05-28T16:19:00.003-04:00

Natalie's under the weather. Yesterday she finished lunch and then snuggled in my lap all afternoon, sleeping off and on. I knew something was up because usually this is her prime time of day for being busy, thirsty, or cranky, but never snuggly. Sure enough, she had a temperature. Thankfully it's not anything serious. So I am enjoying the snuggle time while it lasts.

We have a winner!

2008-05-23T21:57:00.004-04:00

We have some gold medals (a.k.a. foil-covered chocolate coins strung with ribbon) leftover from a church activity and Natalie has enjoyed playing with them. Since she hadn't figured out that they were edible, she didn't really need to be supervised with them, right? So she wore a necklace (I mean medal) to the grocery store tonight, and on the drive home Dave and I were chatting away, not even wondering why we weren't hearing anything from the backseat. Well, she figured out the secret of the gold medals. This is what we saw when we got home. Click on the photos to get the full effect.

I Object!

2008-05-20T22:11:00.005-04:00

Dave was called for Grand Jury duty and would have had to miss work for a month if he were chosen. Fortunately, when he showed up yesterday, they drew the names out of a manila envelope (a fancy method of jury selection, I know) and he was not selected! Dave has beaten the odds. And he didn't even have to use any fancy Elle Woods legalese to get out of it! This was a big relief for us.

Natalie's new dress

2008-05-20T21:53:00.006-04:00

I made Natalie a dress out of a man's button-down shirt! The front of the shirt becomes the back of the dress, and the back yoke of the shirt becomes the front of the dress. I found the idea on craftster.org, and modified the sleeves a bit. I think she looks pretty darn cute.

Come again?

2008-05-09T08:22:00.004-04:00

Natalie shows us what a big girl she is, feeding herself and sharing some of her favorite words.

President Monson, Ear Wiggler Extraordinaire

2008-05-08T11:41:00.002-04:00

For all the LDS folks out there who have heard about President Monson's famous ear wiggle in the Priesthood session of General Conference, here's the video. He's a man of many hidden talents!

My Yard's Most Abundant Perennial

2008-04-30T10:24:00.002-04:00

Dandelions. They are taking over our lawn! Yesterday I pulled the heads off hundreds of dandelions (which is pretty amazing when you consider that the lawn in our backyard is about the size of a postage stamp). I figure if I pull all the heads off the dandelions as they bloom, at least they won't spread new seeds. And when I get a chance, I use a little spade to uproot a few of them. It gets a good portion of the root, and it makes me feel like I'm doing something to turn the tide. Anyone have a tip for getting rid of dandelions without killing the lawn too?

Tuning Us out Already?

2008-04-22T11:13:00.006-04:00

Just had to post this great photo of Natalie wearing some serious headphones. She's got her juice (or Doo, as she says), so she's happy.

More Outdoor Adventures

2008-04-22T10:44:00.003-04:00

We've been playing outside a lot lately because the weather is beautiful! The leaves are just starting to pop out on the trees, and today we even saw some flowering cherry trees in bloom. As the dirty drool on her shirt proves, Natalie continues to insist on re-learning the first rule of the outdoors. Our neighbors keep telling me that everyone needs to eat a peck of dirt before they die. Gross!
In a couple of the photos, Natalie's fists are clenched around something. In one hand she has a rock, and in the other she has a chunk of broken pavement. She is always picking up treasures, and she's very reluctant to put them down. Last night, she was visiting with a little dog, and she couldn't pet it because her hands were full of treasures. Even the prospect of petting a dog couldn't make her let them go!
In another photo, she's walking up to our neighbor's door. She walks from door to door, and occasionally (if she can get close enough before I redirect her) she'll kind of pound/knock on the door to say hello! I think she's wanting them to open the door so she can practice stepping up to the door and back down to the stoop.

A Taste of Spring

2008-04-16T15:04:00.009-04:00

While I was cleaning up the backyard this afternoon, Natalie learned the first rule of the outdoors: dirt doesn't taste good. She picked some out of a planter, and the rest was history. The little dirt eater next to Natalie is Dave. He's probably about the same age as Natalie in this photo. The only difference is, Dave was enjoying it.

I See a Fire Truck

2008-04-15T10:00:00.003-04:00

Natalie has a fun new ride-on toy. It's a fire truck, and she loves it! I bought it at a WeePeats sale last weekend and because of the background noise at the sale I didn't realize how loud and Barney-esque this toy's music is. Of course, when Natalie rides the fire truck, she keeps her thumbs firmly planted on the buttons that make the music play. So it hiccups several times, then runs through a great rendition of "I See a Fire Truck." If you're not already familiar with this song, don't click this link! Save yourself!

King Kong, Eat Your Heart Out

2008-04-15T09:40:00.003-04:00

You know you're having more fun playing with your toddler's toys than she is when....

I constructed an Empire State Building replica out of Mega Bloks, complete with blonde girl hanging off, and tried to get Natalie to pose as King Kong. I think her drool makes it more realistic, don't you? As you can see in one of the pictures, Natalie's more interested in my camera than the building. She is, first and foremost, a technophile.

Six Quiet Dogs

2008-04-11T10:11:00.007-04:00

Last night we were going through Natalie's bedtime routine, and I picked a book to read. It's Doggies: A Counting and Barking Book, by Sandra Boynton. Natalie loves dogs (huge understatement), so this book is a favorite for obvious reasons. But it's a little intimidating to me, because 95% of the book requires the reader to bark like a dog. Actually, like many different dogs. And last night I learned that my dog barks could use some work.

Apparently, Dave has never heard me read this book before. He started snickering quietly at first, and then by the time I got to dog number 3, he was unable to control the laughter, and consequently neither was I. That's probably because at 3, you have to make the following doggie sound: "...nnn...nnn...nnn...." Dave's really good at this one. I can think of 2 reasons for this. His family's dog, Sadie, makes this sound on a regular basis. And also, he's a boy. I really think he's hard-wired to imitate noises well, be they machine guns, Yoda's voice, or a dog's bark. Sure, I know exactly how these things sound in my head, but somewhere between that and actually recreating the sound, there's a disconnect. Are there any girls out there who excel at making such noises? If so, I applaud you. Please come over and read my daughter a book. Because now I can't read Doggies without laughing at myself.

More? You want Moooorrrrre?

2008-04-10T16:54:00.006-04:00

Hooray for sign language! Natalie has mastered one sign--More! She uses it mostly to ask for food, but has been known to also request more books with it as well. In DiBella's the other day, she tried to convince me to give her more of a sub that was sitting on someone else's table! So for Natalie, the more sign basically means "I want that!"(Napoleon Dynamite, anyone?)

In the photo, Dave's holding a juice box and Natalie is repeatedly signing more. This was her first experience with a juice box and she was thrilled with it. Usually Natalie's juice is diluted with water, and I think she finds anything with a straw extra exciting.

Dave was giving her bites of his homemade egg mcmuffin the other morning and immediately after each bite she would start signing more. Natalie knows that sometimes we're slow to respond, or to see the silent signs, so she wasn't wasting any time. Anyone know the signs for chew and swallow?

I was hoping she'd start to do some other signs, and perhaps she will get into these eventually. She'll occasionally do all done. It's just not as high up on her toddler chain-of-command as the all-important MORE! This has been such a great breakthrough on both sides of the highchair tray--we know what she wants (or at least that she wants something) and she knows how to tell us.

Jog, Interrupted

2008-04-10T11:16:00.000-04:00

Last night was a beautiful evening for a jog. A little windy, but otherwise perfect. So I got dressed, transformed Natalie into a blueberry (see photo from another day), loaded her into the jogging stroller, and we were off! Unfortunately, once I got a mile or so away from the house, and I was starting to feel proud of myself for pushing through the wind, Natalie just couldn't take anymore. Crying, runny nose, the works. Even my keys and my water bottle wouldn't make her happy.

Normally I might just turn the stroller around and head home, but she is sick, and I felt guilty for making her sad. And then I started wondering, what was I thinking taking a child with an ear infection out for a jog? Does that jogging stroller even work right? Is it supporting her back at all? So I picked her up and walked. All the way back. While pushing the stroller with my free hand. Argh! As one friendly walker we passed pointed out to me, "This makes it a total body workout!"

Let's hear it for searing pain in my upper arms! But on the plus side, Natalie stopped crying and snuggled into my neck on the way back, which makes it all worthwhile.