Stay Classy

Just a quickie...

Here's the link to my L Magazine article for November.

Speaking of November... how is it November?!?

The Joy of Cooking

It's been a long time since my last cooking post, which is odd considering how much cooking I've been doing as of late. I don't know that I've mentioned it, but I made a resolution when I stopped working until 11 o'clock every night-- I was going to really learn to cook. More specifically, I was going to try at least one new recipe a week. And, probably shockingly given my resolution track record, I've mostly done just that.

I've always been kind of a cooking sissy. It's not something that necessarily comes naturally to me and, if I'm honest, I'm not good at being not good at things. Does that sound horrible? Probably, but it's true. It's a trait that I've worked on a lot as I've gotten older, and I think I'm a whole lot better than I used to be, but my first instinct when I fail at something still tends to be, "Well, screw it". 'Try, try again' is not the natural order of Lauren. At least not with a sunshine-y attitude. As such, there is nothing more disheartening to me than to spend a decent amount of time and effort cooking a meal that does not come out well. But in the interest of not having my children grow up on things that came from either a can or a microwave, I've had to swallow my pride and learn.

With all that being said, I'm feeling pretty good about how far I've come in the 6 months or so I've been working at this cooking thing, especially considering that I've had to do the vast majority of it dairy-free because of Zack's MSPI (which, thank God, seems to be just about done with). I still have my fool-proof staples (Garlic Chicken Bites, Spaghetti Sauce, Taco Soup, Italian Wedding Soup) that I've been making forever, but they don't show up quite so frequently anymore. I've discovered a few new basics that I can modify easily (Baken Chicken, Bacon Potato Fritatta, Pan Roasted Broccoli, Roasted Carrots, Minestrone Soup), as well as some more interesting dishes that have gone into more frequent rotation (Cuban Rice and Beans, Lentils and Spinach, Rosemary Potato Kilebasa). There are a few that I love but I think are a little too girly for Paul's meat-and-potatoes sensibilities (Ginger Curry Chicken with Couscous, Chicken Picata, Eggplant Bruschetta), and there are some that even Brady ate without being coerced (Beef Barley Soup). Oh-- and on Christmas I made Beef Borginion, which was pretty freaking fabulous.

I've also done a ton a baking (dude, I made meringues!), but that's another post for another day.

I think what I've figured out through this little experiment is that I really do enjoy cooking (I enjoy it a whole heck of a lot more when my kids decide to play nicely and not scream at me while I'm doing it, but that's just not a situation I can count on), and there's a real satisfaction that comes from making food for the people I love. Maybe it's the Jewish grandma in me, but I do seem to have that biological need to see my boys enjoying what I cook.

Good Lord-- that all sounded terribly domestic, didn't it? Well, don't worry-- a domestic goddess I still am not. Domestic-ish? Maybe.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Since we're playing catch-up around here, let's move on to Christmas Eve.

The holidays were different this year. Not only was I actually present to enjoy them, but Brady is getting to the age where he gets it. And all that made me realize that I have an amazing opportunity-- I'm the mom now, which means I get to create the holiday memories that my kids will carry with them forever. I get to start the traditions, and tell the stories, and set the tone.

To that end, we spent out Christmas Eve baking cookies for Santa. While Paul played with Zachary, Brady helped me measure and pour and mix, then had his first experience with cookie cutters, which were a huge hit.

(Side note: If you should ever get halfway through baking sugar cookies and realize you don't own a rolling pin, a wine bottle with the label removed works surprisingly well. Not that I would know from experience or anything.) 

The real fun, of course, came after the cookies were baked. I made red, green, and white frosting and bought a bunch of Christmas sprinkles... and we let Brady go to town.

The artist and his work.

Paul and I had fun too.

This guy knows his time will come next year.

Later that night, before he went to bed, Brady got to pick out his favorite cookies to leave for Santa. He took this very seriously.

With the cookies in place, the stories read, and the prayers prayed, he was off to bed.

And as soon as he was asleep... Santa came (and Peanut helped)!

Boo!

In case you didn't notice, yesterday was Halloween. Around here, though, it's felt like Halloween for about a week.

I mean that in a good way. There are so many great Halloween activities for kids in Lincoln, and we've done our best to do it up right.

Also, how could we really kick the adorable quotient in our house up a notch? Costumes, obviously.

Dastardly Captain Babycheeks took his job very seriously. He said "Arrr" and "Yo Ho!" and "Shiver me timbers" to anyone who was interested. Also, he was allowed to carry a sword.

He didn't scare the baby tiger, though.

Early in the week we went to Boo at the Zoo with some friends, which was a great time. Crisp breezes, cute costumes, crunchy leaves, and plenty of candy made for happy kids and happy parents.

Brady and his buddy Olivia the Dinosaur were trick or treaters on a mission.

And, of course, we got in one last train ride before the zoo closed or the season.

The main event, obviously, came on Sunday evening. Brady was all about the trick or treating, and marched out of the house proclaiming, "I'm going to get some chocolate!"

Best of all, he got to trick or treat with a very special entourage. Two of my oldest friends came out to spend the weekend with us, and they accompanied Brady on his candy expedition. He is absolutely in love with his Auntie Katie and Auntie Julieta. They like him too.

And when it started getting pretty chilly, I changed my costume from 'Suburban Mom' to 'Alien Spawn' by zipping Zack into my jacket. I'm assured we looked fairly ridiculous, but the baby extremities needed warming.

All in all, a pretty fabulous Halloween week. Brady also got to go to storytime with a witch at the bookstore, make paper pumpkins at preschool, paint his pumpkins at home, and even made a return trip to the pumpkin patch to lead his Aunties through the corn maze. Once again, I'm learning how much better life's little celebrations are when you see through the eyes of your children.

And don't look now, but I think today marks the official start of The Holidays!

Nearly perfect

How good a day was yesterday? This face should be your first clue.

This is your second (Oh! All the chub! Be still my heart!).

 

When we woke up to a beautiful, sunny Saturday morning, we made the spontaneous decision to make the drive down to Nebraska City to go apple picking at Arbor Day Farm. We've been several times before, but not since Brady was old enough to really appreciate it and certainly not since Zack was born. So off we went... and amazingly, both boys were happy for the whole hour-long drive each way.

We climbed the giant treehouse...

 

Caught the falling leaves...

Walked on wooden balance beams...

Crawled through logs...

Played the giant wooden xylophone...

And finally, headed out on the hayrack ride to the apple orchard.

Brady declared himself "such a good apple-picker!"

But he's a better apple eater.

He ate almost a whole giant Fuji apple, from the top-down, right off the tree, core and all. I hope I never forget how perfectly adorable he was, standing in the middle of an apple orchard, eating an apple nearly the size of his head, with juice running down his face and getting his shirt all sticky.

It was one of those nearly-perfect days. The sun was shining, all my boys were happy, and all was right with the world. It doesn't happen all the time, but when it does... wow.

All in a week...

What I've learned thus far as a mother of two is that we need to get out. Every day, if possible. Parks, the zoo, the pool, concerts, whatever-- just somewhere where we can get a change of perspective, make the most of our summer, and burn off some energy. A lot of the time we go with friends, and other times it's just me and my boys. Both are great, and both do the job.

Here's a little illustration of last week , to make my point...

Sunday, Monday,

 

Happy Days!

Tuesday,

 

Wednesday,

 

Happy Days!

Thursday,

 

Friday,

 

Happy Days!

The weekend comes,

My cycle hums,

 

Ready to race to you!

And always right there with us, either in his stroller or in a carrier on my chest, is this little smiling face:

 

One great week

Remember all those pictures my dad took on my birthday (emphasis on the day-- as in, just one of them)?

Well, he was here for the entire week (a wonderful, wonderful week)... so, as you might, imagine, there are many, many more. I promise I'll abbreviate the collection. You can thank me later.

Anyway, this is one of my new favorites...

Don't we look like the ideal happy family?

About 6 seconds after this photo was taken, Brady inexplicably reached over and smacked Zack on the head (not hard, thankfully), and I yelled at him.

My dad didn't take a picture of that.

Moving on.

We spent a ton of time outside while my dad was here. He managed to pick a week of fabulous weather, which for springtime in Nebraska is really pretty impressive. It wasn't unbearably hot, not uncontrollably windy, and we only had one major thunderstorm (with plenty of loud "flunder", as Brady would put it).

So we played at parks (3 of them, I think!)...

 

Walked to the playground down the street...

 

Ran around the Sunken Gardens...

 

And took Poppi Ken to meet the ducks and geese who live in the ponds near our house.

 

 

There was, of course, plenty of new grandson snuggle time.

 

All of us had a great week, but Brady was absolutely in hog heaven. Nearly undivided attention from his Poppi Ken for an entire week? Twice-daily trips to parks, zoos, and trails? Mac 'n cheese, grilled cheese, cake, and ice cream?

Fuggedaboutit. Very. happy. kid.

It's these kinds of weeks that remind me how much I miss my family, and make me really, really want to just pack everything up and move back to LA (then I start to peruse real estate prices out there and remember why that isn't going to happen for awhile). Seeing how much Brady loves his grandparents, and how much they love my kids, is more amazing than I could have imagined.

It was a great week.

I'm Free!

Aside from making me all swoony, do you understand the significance of this picture?

This, friends, means that Zack will take a bottle.

And that means that there is once again hope that I will be able to do something kid-free that takes longer than an hour.

Oh, the possibilities. 

Photo Re-cap

So I know I'm backtracking a bit here, but I'm finally getting around to going through all the photos we've taken since Zack was born, and I don't want to move on without sharing some of them. Maybe I'm a little bit biased (ok, a LOT biased), but I think they're pretty fabulous. That may have something to do with the subject matter.

The "for the love of all that is good and holy... put me back!" shot.

Cleaned up, fed, and swaddled... much better.

Our very first picture as a family of 4. Brady refused to look at the camera, but I think it adds to the realism. :)

Annnnnd..... I'm in love.

Brady's first shot at holding his baby brother. It made him all giggly.

Zack was not a huge fan of the bath...

...until he realized that warm water is not so bad after all.

Complete.

   

Still Here!

The days seem to be getting away from me lately (hmm... I wonder why!), and all of a sudden it's been way too long since my last post. But we're still here! We didn't drop off the face of the earth-- we just fell into the baby abyss... the "holy cow, there's always either a baby in my arms or one yelling at me" abyss that makes it hard to type (and yes, I totally just invented my own system of punctuation for this sentence).

Actually, we're doing really well, and are surprisingly busy for a family with a baby who is two weeks old today. I developed such cabin fever while Zachary was on the lightbelt for his jaundice that the second his bilirubin levels fell enough for him to be taken off of it (which was last Thursday-- hallelujah!), we hit the ground running and haven't looked back. Over the last 5 days, we have:

-gone to hang out with a friend who was having a garage sale, and had a Jimmy Johns picnic in her garage,

-taken several walks in the neighborhood, both with the new double stroller and with Zack in the moby carrier and Brady pulling his wagon,

-taken Zack on his first trip to the supermarket for our weekly shopping trip (we used the divide and conquer method-- Paul stayed home with Brady, I took Zachary to the store, again all wrapped up in the moby),

-had friends over for dinner (well, they brought the dinner) on both Friday and Saturday nights,

-braved taking both boys to the zoo by myself for the first time (Zack slept in his stroller the whole time, but I still felt like a mom stud),

-and walked the 3-mile trail loop by our house twice with the double stroller, once with Paul and once with a friend and her baby.

Whew!

I think the reason I'm surviving is that I've managed to sneak in an afternoon nap almost every day while Brady and Zack nap. And before you think my neuroses have magically disappeared and I'm being too cavalier about taking an infant out into the germy world, let me assure you that that's not at all the case. The awesome part about the moby wrap is that Zachary is all nestled in against my chest, and anyone who wanted to touch him, or even get close enough to breathe on him, really, would have to get seriously up in my personal space-- and so literally nobody has. Everyone who has touched him has been in our house-- and believe me, there is a lot of hand sanitizer in out house. So I really do think we've found a good balance of keeping him as protected as possible without cutting ourselves off from the world and having Brady turn into a complete raving lunatic.

So you may be asking yourself, "Self, if Brady and Zack have been doing all this fun stuff, then where the heck are all the pictures?" Yeah... that's where I get a big old mom FAIL. There really aren't any, other than the few I've taken with my phone. I think I've discovered the secret of why there are always so many fewer pictures of second children-- when you've got a toddler, and a baby, and a diaper bag, and a stroller, how in the world do you even carry a camera, let alone take it out and use it? Given that Paul is absolutely working his tail off and logging insane hours these days, I'm generally on my own with the boys-- which means I usually have to choose between taking photos and keeping them away from physical danger. Safety wins every time, which means a serious photo deficit. Hopefully, I'll get better at this over time.

So that's the quick and dirty update. Next time, pictures-- I promise!