Things to do in Yellow

Tomorrow we all hop on a plane to the desert to see the Tucson crew - Grandma Janne, Grandpa Mit and Great Grandma Vede. Bonus feature is that Pop Pop and Nana will also be there to celebrate Nana's Birthday. Jackpot! Before we head out, I thought I'd write a quickie blog post, but I was somewhat lacking in a theme. Finger drumming, thumb twiddling. . . So I checked some recent shots of Addie over the weekend. Hmmm all blurry. That could be a theme. Well, she is also in a fetching yellow shirt that makes her look like a Stan, Ron or Bob. Okay, Yellow it is!

Here are a few things one might find themselves doing while wearing yellow.

1. Playing Nintendo Gamecube


2. Napping toward Mecca


3. Hitching a ride on Papa



Can't wait for Tucson! See ya'll soon.

Happy 9 Months Addie!

When do I get to stop celebrating Addie's monthly birthdays? Maybe at a year but then toss in 18 months for good measure. In the meantime, Happy 9 month birthday Addie-cake!

What better way to celebrate then to partake in a Saturday afternoon Dog Rolling, or Dog Stompin' as Jamie put it. Poor Rocket. He's been conquered by the Mighty Addie - a gal to be reckoned with. I'm glad Jamie snapped a photo because otherwise the only other photo taken on Addie's birthday was a shot I took of her chewing Cap's shoelaces.

Look everyone, Addie's 9 months old, can eat shoelaces AND walk on dogs! Wooohooooooo.

Clippers, please

Um, do you think it's time for a pedicure?













(click on the image to enlarge for a full crusty view of those talons)

Pea Popsicles

Since my food confessional a few weeks back, I thought I'd take a moment to tell you we've made progress. In addition to rice cereal, sweet potatoes and carrots, I've now added bananas, pears, peas and more squash to Addie's diet. Saturday she got to gnaw on a sourdough pretzel, a favorite of mine. I've even been so adventuresome as to try my hand at some homemade baby food.

For most meals, the organic jar food is great, and I bought at least one of everything this weekend at the Ralphs. We also have on hand a batch of homemade, frozen peas and butternut squash. I'll admit though that I bought frozen butternut squash that was already nicely cubed leaving me to steaming, pureeing and then pouring into the ice cube tray molds. Easy!

My pièce de résistance of baby food culinary feats is roasted Kabocha squash. If you've had vegetable tempura before you've had this sweet Japanese pumpkin. Addie hasn't sampled it yet but what's not to like? She doesn't seem to have any preference for my homemade colored food cubes over the jarred food, which probably means my cooking is as bland as the store bought stuff. Either way, it goes down the hatch and that's what matters. I only wish I ate such a variety of healthy foods. Lucky for Addie, they don't make pizza in a jar yet.

Leading Lady

Oh! That director! He wouldn't know a real lady if she slapped him across the face. Which, mind you, he deserves. My Alabama accent is nothing if it isn't right on the mark. 6 weeks of elocution lessons! And don't get me started on the leading man. Who does he think he is coming onto the set drunk as a skunk each morning? We're professionals! If he doesn't watch it, he'll get kicked out on the street. I don't care how many films he's been in.
Will someone please get me another club soda with a twist?

Addie Puzzle

one fish two fish

Addie and her parents are big fans of aquariums. This is Addie's third aquarium visit but her first to the Long Beach aquarium. She continues to like all yellow fish and the octopi. I don't think the wise octopus finds its current digs very challenging because there was a Mr. Potato Head toy in the tank - a disembodied Darth Tater if I'm not mistaken.

Addie would have enjoyed the aquarium more if she could actually have seen it. Turns out Miss Addie was cultivating conjunctivitus (pink eye) and was subsequently banned from daycare Monday and Tuesday. I got a nasty bug and was out cold (and hot and cold and hot) with a 102 degree fever during the same time. Poor Cap was left to rescue Addie from daycare, whisk her off to the Doc's, get her prescription eye drops and take care of her all day while trying to work. I slept and slept and then on Tuesday, I watched Addie in a pretty half-dead sort of way in the morning and then Cap came home and took second shift. Cap is pretty much a super hero.

This stupid flu also kept me from attending my very first class as a real college student. I'm no longer part of the continuing educaton program but am actually enrolled in Santa Monica College. I even have my own student ID number and will hopefully get to purchase the student ticket price at the movie theater. Oh wait. I don't go to the movies anymore. Still, I'm very excited to be taking Photo II: Black and White Photography and Developing. I still feel like a neanderthal with a "real" camera and rely on the trusty point and shoot digital to take all of the photos on the blog. What I haven't figured out yet is how I am going to find the time to take a real class for 16 weeks, with real homework and real grades. And be a full time Mom (can't be any less can you?) and work full time. Hmmm. Maybe I know why I'm constantly sick.


So back to our spectacular day at the aquarium with Addie's pals Jake and Tayloe. Addie got to touch a starfish and a sea anemone who wrapped it's sticky (technically they are stinging neurotoxins but humans and clownfish are immune) tentacles around her finger. I got to pet a sea hare and a sea cucumber which are my favorite things to do at the aquarium. So soft, so squooooshy. We can't wait to go back again.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hugs and Kisses from Addie

Rubber Duckie

The mutant Unicorn Duck is Addie's newest and most favoritest toy. She's also taken to carrying her toys around in her mouth like a puppy. This frees her up to crawl about or just cuddle. We got Addie this toy on Saturday while taking a post-prandial promenade on 3rd Street (West Hollywood not Santa Monca) with our NY pals Bethany and Mo who are getting hitched in August. Bethany and I have been friends since kindergarten in Mamaroneck, NY where we lived 2 doors away from each other. I hope Addie is lucky enough to have lifelong pals like that too.


(ps. I also chopped off all my hair right before my birthday. It's the new 2007 me.)

Kitchen Help

Don't forget Mama likes extra mayo.

Chinese Slippers

These are very special shoes. Maybe even magic shoes.

I bought these Chinese slippers when I was 11 weeks pregnant on our trip to Shanghai; they were my first baby purchase. Convinced I was having a boy, I went for blue but figured turquoise would be good for either gender. I was a little superstitous when I was pregnant and didn't really buy any clothes. The exception was a major sale on newborn basics at Babystyle.com and I went crazy shopping on-line. Even then I kept everything sealed in their original plastic with receipts -- in case the worst happened. I read you were supposed to wash all your baby clothes in preparation of the arrival of your little bundle of joy. Not me. All of my baby shower gifts I kept wrapped in their original packages. Cap finally had to take control and wash Addie's Pink Palace bedding because I wouldn't dare open it. He also wasn't able to resist test driving the stroller.

I waited and worried, waited and worried and out popped the baby one week late (felt like a freakin' eternity) and 8 months later I finally get around to putting Addie's little princess feet into her Chinese slippers. Apparantly one year is how long it takes to sew on snaps. Why would shoes require assembly? I busted out the sewing kit this past week, only stabbing myself once, and sewed on those darn snaps (the first try I did it backwards). So here she is in her Chinese slippers even though her feet are almost too big for them. I'm not very sentimental, but these shoes we'll keep forever.

dr watson, i presume

I think Addie looks like my Dad here. We took this on Sunday, and I can see my Dad mulling over his sermon with his reading glasses dangling from the side of his mouth. He might even have a floppy sun hat too -- sans rick rack.



(and we love Addie's cute outfit. thanks Pierce clan!)

Go Colts!

Peyton Manning has finally had his moment in the Super Bowl sun. or in this case rain. lots and lots of rain. Addie, however, watched her first Super Bowl decked out in her Colts finery, on a sunny and exceptionally warm 80 degree day. She also gagged herself on a leaf and barfed.

Cap joked that Addie looks like George Dubya here.

Shower Time

Where oh where shall we bathe our little baby?

Little Miss Addie has been bathed and scrubbed clean in the cozy kitchen sink since day one, or probably day 6 or something. She's however now outgrown the little divided sink where she was looking like we were trying to defrost a 17 pound turkey.

What next? Buy a giant plastic behometh? No room to store it and I'm selfish and don't want my ahem delicate knees to withstand kneeling on hard linoleum. Shower? I don't trust myself to hold a slippery baby and how the heck would I get to wash to my hair? Well, it turns out that there is a third option. Maybe everyone already knew this but it seemed novel to me. Bring the baby into the shower but give her her own seat.

Addie showers sitting down safely in her little seat getting misted and one of us gets to take a shower. Works like a charm. She get's cleaned. I get cleaned. Well, actually Cap does. I tried it once and she cried so I've been too chicken to try it again but she seems to enjoy it with Cap. Bath time used to be part of her nightime routine but now she showers with the rest of workforce in the morning. The only downside I can see is that she doesn't get to splash away in the water, but she and her ducky can pretend they are exploring the rain forest together instead.

. . . and in non-naked baby news, Addie's finally wearing #3 size diapers and has transitioned into her 6-9/12 month clothes. We are still squeezing on a few favorite 3-6 month duds but not for long.