Don't bite me you toothy girl!

Pippa had the opportunity to meet a good portion of her extended Peers family this past weekend. We shlepped up to Spencerport, NY for our annual Peers Family Picnic. We planned on being gone for 6 days, the longest trip Pippa has taken in both mileage and duration. Packing for something like that is always challenging. I like to travel light and keep things simple, but that is hardly possible any more. We were lucky we were able to see out of the back window of my Outback at all! And to think, I once questioned the necessity of an SUV! Ha!

Of course, Pippa woke up that morning cutting her first tooth. Yup. Ladies and gentleman, we have a tooth! With a second soon to follow. It's her bottom left and so cute. She is always playing and sucking on my fingers, but that kind of thing has obviously stopped. She doesn't yet realize that thing is sharp! I admit I'm a little nervous of being bitten while nursing. So far so good but...

It's too bad she couldn't have arranged for a better time to cut a tooth than on a 6 hour car ride, though. She was grumpy (for her) but all in all handled it pretty well thanks to Sto in the back seat and organic banana puffs! I generally don't like to use food as entertainment...except in the car.

We had a great time at the PFP and she loved meeting various Aunts, Uncles, and cousins. (Darned if I can remember how everyone is related to everyone else, though.) She especially loved watching my cousin Mandy perform a few songs with her guitar. Mesmerized is the right word, I believe. And she LOVES playing with my mother (Nana). She is instantly smiles, squeals, and giggles for her. Its like magic. But I think the best part of the trip was watching my grandfather, Pippa's great grandfather, hang out with her. They delighted each other and Sto and I both feel that its so important for her to soak up her heritage while she can. Family is oh so important...and fun!

Calling Gold St.

This year marks 10 years since I graduated college. This blows my mind. How does that saying go? Time flies? Yes and yes. It seems like just yesterday I was painting my the walls of my room bright green at our house on Gold St.

Ahhh, Gold St. Many a good time was had there. Theme parties. 'Family' dinners. A myriad of drinking games at a huge dining room table. Darts at the Elmwood. Wings at the Distillery. But all of my fondest memories involve the Gold St. Girls, as we referred to ourselves. Laura, Ashley, Jana, and I (and a few transients) lived together for 2 great years.

Most of us recently got together to show off our families and brag about our gorgeous babies. I have a hard time believing that there are 4 kids between us, but its true. Ashley's little Calab is the most recent and Jana's Ben and Sean are the 'big kids'. We oogled over the babies and swapped motherhood war stories. I'm sure Ashley will agree with me when I say Jana is a great mommy example for us. Her boys are truly great and she takes care of them with such grace!

Both of these women are amazing mothers, but this doesn't surprise me in the least. I've always known they are amazing women, as is Laura who unfortunately couldn't make it. I am one lucky chic to have so many beautiful and powerful women in my life! Love you ladies!

!!Caution!!

If you are going to put a cloth diaper on your baby with no cover, in order to let her little bottom breath, then please make sure you check for poop before you pick her up. Otherwise you will end up with poop all over your white T-shirt and dripping down your arm.

Food Club

The first rule of Food Club is that you have to talk about Food Club.

The second rule of Food club is that there is no guilt. You are allowed, and encouraged, to eat anything and everything you want. This includes extra butter on your roll.

The third rule of Food Club is that you have to try something new.

So I met up with my dear friend Laura tonight for dinner in Philadelphia. She recommended we go to this tiny French place in South Philly that has been getting rave reviews called Bibou. It turns out that the chef is La Bec Fin alumni and you can really tell. On Sundays it's a prefixed menu and everything was amazing. So over a bottle of wine and conversation that was mostly not about Pippa, we decided that we needed to get together and try out new restaurants more often. And so, Food Club was born. So for all the foodies reading this (Mary) (Joel) here is what we ordered:

1st Course:

Sweet Corn Soup. I am always a sucker for corn soup.

Appetizers:

Foi Gras with a grilled peach and brandy reduction. It was to die for. I always feel a little guilty eating Foi Gras but luckily there is no guilt in Food Club.

Escargot. In adherence to rule number 3 we were brave and tried the snails. Sto orders them all the time and has never once vomited so we gave it a go. They were good. Not lot of flavor but not slimy or chewy like I expected. From now on I can be all nonchallant and feel superior to everyone else who is grossed out. Excellent.

Entree:

Sword fish on a bed of fennel, fresh peas, capers, and some other yummy stuff. I housed it.

Seared scallops with some yummy stuff. Also very good.

Cheese Plate:

The usual sort of thing with one soft cows milk cheese, one soft goats milk, and astinky blue cheese. I've had better, but then, I also prefer my cheese in the beginning of mymeal.

Desert:

Laura had chocolate cake with creme anglaise sauce and fresh berries and I had the pot de creme. They were both delicious though we were both stuffed by this point. Luckily I save a little space right here (pointing to the side of my belly) had was able to enjoy desert of a cup of French pressed decaf coffee.

I love eating out this way. Sto and I used to do it all the time in Manhattan and I miss that part of city living. Our goal is to have Food Club meet twice a month, though this may seriously debunk my get-in-shape efforts. But there's no guilt in Food Club! That's definitely my favorite rule.

Yogurt Update

Using dry milk in the previously posted yogurt recipe works great. Yum yum yum. Now I'm going to make my own granola to go with it. I'm also thinking about making yogurt and peach puree popsicles.

Downward Dog

Pippa and I have started taking a Mommy and Me Yoga class every week. We signed up with our mommy friends hoping to get in a little exercise and meditation. Very funny.

Where was this class 4 months ago! It would have been perfect then, when our little ones were stationary. Now we spend half the time chasing after them making sure they aren't eating all the other children's toys or climbing on another baby's mommy. It's kind of a comedy routine! I guess I shouldn't have expected a quiet, peaceful room either. Half the time I'm trying to ignore another baby's grumping (obviously Pippa is never the one grumping)(joke) and the other half of the time I'm laughing at baby giggles and squeals. But the whole class is like that so no one minds.

Overall the class is NOT challenging for me, being the expert yogi that I am (another joke) but it is a work out and it's gotten me motivated to practice at home more often. I think I'll start a weekly grown-up yoga class soon. For anyone who hasn't tried yoga, I think you really should. It's a serious work out and it really helps to calm the inner voice that is always going going going. Sometimes you just need some quiet...even if it's amongst baby giggles.

Red Alert! We're Mobile!

It's not really crawling yet. It's sort of a scoot. Or maybe an army crawl. Really, its more like swimming on land. She flails her arms and legs and somehow manages to move forward. Hilarious to watch! The best motivation is chasing the dog. Right when she gets up to Ting, she moves another couple of feet away and it starts all over again.

I thought I was doing pretty well at child proofing but now that Pippa is a master of mobility I'm realizing exactly what is enticing to a baby. And my floors are not as clean as I thought they were! If there is a dust bunny in the corner or under a chair, she'll find it! Thankfully she not too fast so I don't have to worry about the stairs yet. But I'm sure that's just a matter of weeks. She likes trying to pull herself up, too, and can get to her knees with a lot of effort. Guess I'll have to lower the mattress yet again. Hurray for progress!

Hunting Babysitters

I am now on the hunt for a babysitter. Not sure why it's taken me so long because it's turning out to be a lot easier than I anticipated. There are many websites to make the search easy. I'm using one called care4hire.com. They have listings of all sorts of care givers, not just babysitters. I found the profiles of 5 or 6 sitters and am in the process of setting up interviews. My first one is coming over in a few hours. I've picked all young sitters which has its ups and downs. Sto is not quite as comfortable with the idea of a 20 year old babysitter, but that's mainly because he's thinking about what he was like when he was 20. Ha! I wouldn't have hired him either! But I would have hired me. One of the potentials is a nursing student, so obviously I want her. I have this weird belief stuck in my head that a college age woman would be less likely to want to steal my baby, as opposed to a middle aged woman who doesn't have any kids. Call me crazy.

The idea of having an actual babysitter who will come to my house is opening up all sorts of possibilities for me. I want to take a regular yoga class. I can finally go to the dentist. Its endless! We've even been talking about taking a ski vacation with friends this winter and taking a sitter with us. Now thats an exciting thought! Stay tuned...

Independence Day

Every 4th of July we like to go to the beach and this year was no exception. We were lucky enough to have my dear friend Jen come with us. Sto's aunt has a place and the family converges on this weekend for some serious relaxation, a lot of sun, and even more food. This year the weather was perfect and we all got some great beach time in. Pippa had a fun time exploring the sand and surf with her Daddy. We headed to the arcade on day to get out of the heat or a while. In hindsight it was way too much stimulation for a 7 months old, but live and learn.

The highlight of the weekend was when the neighbors challenged us to a wiffle

ball game. We showed our spirit by wearing bandanas with our nick names written on them and running out to 'Eye of the Tiger'. It was our poor attempt at intimidating them into submission. Who wouldn't tremble playing against The Assassin (me), The Terminator (Sto), The Fury (Chuck), and White Lightning (Jen)? In the end, however, we got our butts kicked and felt lucky to score 2 runs to there 10! But we all had a great time and are already thinking about next year! I love holidays with family at the beach!

Remembering ME

I think there comes a point in motherhood where you need to take back your identity. I've reached that point. I think it has a lot to do with Pippa's age. Since she reached the 6 month point I started to feel like she is a little less 'fragile', I guess you could say. I put in the work with breastfeeding and sleep training and she's hitting a groove. That's not to say things are smooth sailing all the time. That's not what I mean. I think I just mean that she can take a little pushing or stretching and she can handle it now. That gives me a lot more freedom. And it lets me take a breath. And when I take that breath I realize that I don't want to loose who I am as a person and a woman. I love being a mother but its not all that I am.

Now, don't get me wrong. I have no plans on returning to work right now. No need to go crazy! But it is good to feel like myself and try to continue to have a life outside of the baby. Try to focus on other interests and hobbies. Try to keep caught up with current events, for instance. And try to carry on conversations involving topics other than my daughter. So far this is challenging since I really don't have much else in my life. But, hey, it's a process, right? I recently ran a 5K. I started some yoga again. I even have a new look thanks to my hip hair dresser. It's all part of striving to be a well rounded person.

So here's to remember me!

Yogurt

My newest domestic experiment is making yogurt. I eat plain yogurt all the time and its such a waste of plastic since my town doesn't recycle #5s. Not to mention its a lot cheaper to make it yourself. So, thanks to my friend Mary, I learned how to do it in the crock pot. It turned out great! I was a little nervous that it might give me food poisoning but you can be assured that I've waited 24 hours after eating it to post this and still feeling great! Here is what I did:

Put 1/2 gallon 2% organic milk into the crock pot and cook on low for 2 hours and 45 minutes. Then put 1-2 cups into a bowl and whisk in 1/2 cup quality organic yogurt. I used non-fat greek yogurt by Stonyfield Farms. Then pour the mixture back into the crock pot and wrap the whole thing in a towel to insulate (the crock pot is now off and unplugged) for 8-12 hours. (Mine went for 13). Then pour into mason jars and put in the fridge for several more hours to thicken.

Delish! It's a thin type of yogurt, which I really like, but if you like it thicker they say to add 1/2 cup dry milk at the start. I might try that next time just to see what it's like. I like to eat mine with granola a blueberries.

My next domestic experiment? Canning...