Sunday, May 18, 2008

M-I-C… See you real soon!

Nicholas and I took a trip to Southern California to visit with my parents. It was our first airplane trip on our own. It was his first trip to meet Grandma and Grandpa. It was going to be our first taste of summer weather for 2008.

The only things on our agenda were 1) to visit with his maternal Great Grandmother, 2) to introduce him to a swimming pool and 3) to have him meet Goofy and his Pals.

Bubba met his great grandmother. Though he won't remember their introduction, I will and I'll remind him all about it. He flashed her his million dollar smile. He patted her hand. He sang to her. All while she was lying asleep in her hospital bed. It was a bittersweet visit.

The swimming pool thing never happened. I'm still not sure how we didn't fit it in but we didn't.

My parents live in the OC. On my sister's suggestion we had a weekend brunch at Goofy's Kitchen in the Disneyland Hotel. There's a lot of things I can say about this experience but the only one I'll write about is Bubba's delight with meeting the Disney characters. Before our party was seated, we took a picture with Goofy all done up in a chef's outfit in front of a cartoon kitchen backdrop. The baby was fascinated with Goofy's whiskers. It was cute and I was grateful that he wasn't trying to put the whiskers in his mouth. While we were seated at our table, various characters came around with a special greeting for him and there was dancing with the characters at the buffet area.

With validated parking, it was the perfect amount of Disney-to-cost ratio for a person who naps every three hours. I guess that song was right because we'll be back.

Saturday, May 17, 2008

Hot Child, Summer in the City

Finally! It's hot. Damn hot! For those of you reading who aren't from Seattle, cut me some slack. I will gladly take 80 degrees in May.

I'm a nursing Mom and though I am comfortable with the idea of having a moderate amount of coffee blended blah blah or a sweet sexy saucy cocktail, that's not what I'm in the mood for. Those things keep me feeling icky and sticky on days like today. I'm also the type that prefers ice cream in the winter. For me it's ice water and a homemade smoothie.

There are lots of smoothie recipes available but I want to share my tried and true recipe from my days working at a café and book store in Southern California (which has since gone out of business for reasons unrelated to the quality of their smoothies).

Make-It-Yourself Smoothie:
1 Cup liquid (i.e. juice, watered down juice, lemonade, or milk)

¼ Cup to ½ Cup protein (i.e. plain yogurt, vanilla yogurt, Greek yogurt or peanut butter) – OR –
1 serving of your favorite protein powder

1 – 2 Servings of fresh of frozen fruit

½ Cup of ice if you want that extra crunch

Here are my favorite combinations:
· Lactose Free Milk – Peanut Butter – Banana
· Pear Juice – Greek Yogurt – Frozen Mangos
· Pomegranate Juice –Protein Powder – Frozen Berries – Ice
· Lemonade – Protein Powder –Strawberries – Ice

Do you make and freeze your baby's food? You can also try using some of his fruit.

Bottoms up, you Hottie!

Friday, May 16, 2008

Whose Bag Is It Anyway?

My memory is hit-or-miss. When it comes to remembering what I learned in high school Chemistry, it's a miss. But when it comes to almost anything shopping related, it's a hit. A big hit.

I remember shopping for our smart diaper bag which we bought after the baby was born. I reviewed my options with my husband in mind. What would he want to carry? What is the most practical bag? We settled on a black nylon messenger bag with a really cool convertible strap system. The most important part about this statement is the word "We." We purchased this bag.

Flash forward in time several months. My husband, baby and I were invited to a baby shower in honor of great friends who were expecting baby number two. All three of us were over-stimulated by the two-year old kids running around, playing with toys, and talking VERY LOUDLY. At some point during the party I went to grab something from my diaper bag. Hmm… that's funny. I have the same bag as someone else. Wait… that's not it! On my third attempt, I identified the correct bag.

Flash forward in time several more months. As we were leaving the pediatrician's office I was telling my husband about how I felt like a Mom through-and-through at that moment. The description was something like this – "I'm sleepy. I'm wearing what could be considered by some to be pajamas. My hair's out of control and my purse is busting at the seams." My dear sweet husband shared a laugh with me and pointed out, "It's not a purse. It's a diaper bag."

Flash back one day, one week, one month… you get the picture. "We" don't use the diaper bag. I use the diaper bag and my husband holds it if I ask him to.

My husband's words were like bad song lyrics I couldn't get out of my head.

Well, I have finally decided to change the station, and guess what? I love this new song! ... Figuratively, of course.

Armed with a gift card I received as a Christmas gift, I have now purchased what should only be described as a purse. A roomy purse with a beautiful canvas body and leather trim. This bag is for me. It holds my things (although it still has room for the baby's things). This bag is to be worn by me, not my stroller. Yippee!

So now the baby is sleeping through the night, I am wearing super cute dark denim shorts instead of workout capris, I style my hair every other day and now I have a purse not a diaper bag. Progress, hah cha!!