Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Mardi Gras

David and I had a delightful Fat Tuesday yesterday, complete with king cakes, gumbo, and jambalaya. Lissie loved the food (surprisingly.) She is most definitely her father's daughter when it comes to food choices. She gobbles up things with copious amounts of seasoning and spices. Well, they can hang out together while I water down my soup time and time again. Here's a few pictures of the festivities.

Trying on the queen's crown. 
Our table before the food was set. I forgot to take pictures of all the food. 

This is our king. He found the baby Jesus in his slice of King Cake.

David's awesome Gryffindor/bird mask.

Lissie looking a little uncertain about all the masks.

The Mardi Gras Royalty.

This is a happy chocolate faced girl.
If you're wondering while all the pictures look a little smudged, it's because they are. Lissie got ahold of the camera and put her fingers all over the lens. We didn't realize it until we downloaded the pictures.
Happy Mardi Gras!

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Sisyphus and Readings


So the longer I get used to being at home, the more I'm convinced that I am the living example of Sisyphus. You know the guy. The king in Greek mythology condemned to roll a giant bolder up a hill. Just when he gets it almost to the top and view his amazing accomplishment it rolls back down to the bottom. And he has to go back down and roll it up again. And again. For all eternity.
I don't have a boulder. But I have a kitchen, and laundry, and bathroom. And carpet covered in crumbs. And a baby with a poopy diaper. And seriously, just when I think I'm almost to the top of the laundry pile, it all comes tumbling down. It's fine most of the time. I keep upbeat and roll my bolder right back up, but sometimes, I just want to sit on top of it and read a book.


This winter my public library has been doing this book reading challenge where there are three different book genres a week and you see how many you can read in that week. It's saved me this winter. It's been really good for me. I've never actually checked a book out of the mystery section, and now I have. Same with the westerns. But I couldn't actually bring myself to read that one. Its pages were stained with fumes of the most odorous cologne I've ever smelled. That must have been one smelly cowboy. That one just went straight back to the library after spending a night on my porch.


But I have read a lot of things that I probably normally wouldn't have. Like a biography about Audrey Hepburn. Did you know she dedicated the last 20 years of her life to work with UNICEF? She traveled all over the world raising money and spending time with impoverished children. Reading about her work and these children really made me think. What if Lissie had been born in a country like that? What if she were the one starving in Africa while I spent more money on food than she would ever see in her life. It broke my heart and made me resolve to help make change. And so I am going to. In very small, seemingly insignificant ways, but it's something. And it's more than nothing. So that is that.



I also read my first graphic novel. It was called The Arrival by Shaun Tan. It was an enlightening analogy about immigration and people wanting to make a better life for themselves. I've always supported those who want that. I feel that we, as a country, make it far too hard for people to do. Both as an unwelcoming society and through bureaucratic red tape and expenses that these people can't afford. The book only takes like 10 minutes to go through, so if you have time, see if your library has it.


Right now I'm reading Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. Despite it's rather tepid beginning, I'm really enjoying it. So even though I have my Sisyphus like slumps, life is interesting and complex. It's just a matter of wading through the diapers to find it.

Lisabeth

Lissie is almost 11 months, which is almost a year, which is pretty much 5 and going to school, which is like 18 and graduated, and then going to college and moving out. But back to 11 months. It's been crazy how she learns and picks new things up every day. Here's a list of new things she can do.

1) Play hide-and-seek with a sheet. She loves to put a blanket over her face and hear me ponder aloud where she could have gotten too. I hear her giggling under the sheet as if she is the cleverest, sneakiest person around. Then she pulls it off and looks like she just apparated into the room.

2) Taking a few shaky steps independently.

3) Says mama and daddy.

4) Claps her hands.

5) Gives high five.

6) Pours olive oil all over my kitchen floor.

7) Puts her hands into the toilet seat water and tries to cup some into her mouth while I'm trying to clean olive oil up off of my kitchen floor. Awesome.

8) Laughs and squeals whenever her dad comes home.

9) Follows me around the house saying, Ma, ma, ma!

10) Loves Curious George. She loves his books, his show, his stuffed animal. I think she thinks that George is a baby. Or that she's a monkey. I can't decide.

Eat chocolate.
Giving me a face that says, "Why did you stop feeding me chocolate?"


Happy froggy face.
I don't eat squash. I wear it like war paint!

Bed time.

Boy this string sure tastes good.

Mom, you do realize that there's a giant candybar next to you? What if it tries to take revenge for all the candybars you've eaten?

Chocolate? What chocolate?

January

January was filled with farm shows, zoo trips, and holiday celebrations. It was Lissie's first farm show and she had a good time watching all the animals. I had a good time watching all the people. This was the first year that we weren't there to see the Junior Draft Horse Competition. I know what you're thinking, "They actually go for something besides the milkshakes?" Yes, we do. We've seen this competition for the last four years and it's been entertaining to see the same competitors come each year and grow up. I even have a little girl I root for. She probably has no idea that she has fans....Ha!
Mom....Dad is holding me next to a chicken... I know Lissie. Chickens are scary. Really.

Butter Sculpture. It's some ridiculous amount of like 1,000 pounds of butter. Did you know there's a butter shortage in Norway? We should ship them this sculpture when the farm show is over....

Lissie and I got a membership to Zoo America and that's kept us occupied. I think we've been to the zoo like 4 out of the last 5 weekends. Yeah, we live a rip-roarin' lifestyle, I tell you. She enjoys it though. Her favorite animals are the big cats. The ones that could eat her alive. She points to them and makes this noise like, "ooooh." And then tries to get me to go closer. If she could talk, she would probably be saying something like, "Just throw me over the bars, mom. I want to play with the kitty. You think it will eat me alive? I'll show you just what an amazing lion tamer I am!"

Watching the lynx. (Lynx not pictured.)

With the stroller, I'm almost as tall as a bear!

Hedwig.


We also celebrated Chinese New Year (happy dragon everyone) and David shaved his burly beard. Next he's going to try and grow it out so long he can braid it and light it on fire with little firecrackers and stuff. Like Blackbeard. I'm going to leave you to ponder if that really is the truth....



Holidays 2011

We had a fantastic holiday season. It really was a banner of a year. David had a few days off around Christmas and we made the most of it. But we made sure to have fun all December long.
We had a ripping Hanukkah celebration with latkes and some mad dreidel games. Lissie and I created a dreidel dance. But we didn't record it. So you'll never know.


There was all sorts of gingerbreading. We went to see the huge gingerbread house at Chocolate World. Then we made our own gingerbread lighthouse. Because that's what we do with our spare time. We make stuff. Useful stuff. Like inedible gingerbread lighthouses. 




Lissie went to HersheyPark for the first time. She loved the lights and all the people. She fell asleep shortly after the picture on the carousel. 


We decorated sugar cookies. But that eventually devolved into pagan rituals and face painting. You know, typical December entertainment.
Lissie's December attire. She turned 9 months and is as spirited and happy as ever.


Lissie definitely did not go neglected this Christmas. This is a snowsuit she got for Christmas.
Lissie lay there like a slug, it was her only defense. 




I think we had a pretty good year. We love and miss our families, but had a great time together.