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Washing Hands

Today we discovered a much more fun way of getting clean after one's lunch than hovering over a silly old grownup-sized sink.


He even made sure to use up allll the water in the bowl.

Randomness

Not much going on here, just the balancing act of keeping the house clean and the pantry stocked, finding time to write, and, of course, riding herd on a very active boy. We discovered a great place for babies and children under 5 on Monday and spent nearly an hour there doing puzzles and crawling around the "sensory room." The sensory room is very baby friendly with a little mini ball pit, changing lights, bells and chimes to swat at, buttons to push... and it's all very crawl-friendly with pads and beanbags lining the floor.

I weighed him today and he's pushing upward on that graph - nearly at the 10th percentile. The reflux meds are definitely working. Chatted with a couple of the health visitors I know, plus a woman from the post-natal group I was in. She's from South Africa so I felt no guilt in moaning to her about the weather contrast between here and California. (And yes, if you haven't guessed, it's been raining here! And humid to boot! Well, I guess better humid than cold, but ew.)

I don't have any recent pictures, so I'll just stick up a few from CA, because what's a blog post without pictures? :)


Getting up close and personal with a pair of friendly goats at the fair's petting zoo.


Navigating the stairs at the 4th of July barbecue with grandpa in tow.

Movie for Minnie

Just a short movie for Minnie who is in the hospital.

Tying Up Loose Ends

It's going to be very difficult to leave CA! Everyone has been so welcoming. There was never a shortage of helping hands for the baby, and I was amazed at how babyproof things were. It was always a pleasure and never a chore to visit other houses! Thanks for the wonderful food, company, and... well, everything.

I'm going to miss being surrounded by so much nature. I don't think I'll ever take it for granted again. I love seeing the mountain so close and having beaches nearby, and walking out onto the marshes late at night with hardly another soul on the path.

I scanned in a few photos today. Won't post them all today, but I'll make a good start.

In honor of the family reunion going on right now in TX (which I wish we could have made!) here's a reunion announcement from 1983. (Click to enlarge.)

My mom when she was younger, with her dog Skippy (I think).


Sisters - My mom and my aunt Marjorie Deane.



Mawmaw learnin' me how to read.

Mawmaw and I in San Francisco somewhere.


Me playing the piano in church.

Riding with Jess in Hawaii when I was 12.

That's all for now, stay tuned for part 2 sometime later this week once I get around to it. Our things at the new place are still mostly in boxes, so things will be busy for awhile until the unpacking settles down and I get things where I want 'em. Wish us luck on the flight back.

Happy Fourth!

(And no hard feelings to my British readers.)

My laptop bit the dust, so I haven't been posting as much. We've packed a lot into this last week. Right now I'm sitting and listening to the fireworks going off - I'm too lazy to climb onto the roof this year to watch 'em.

We went to the county fair and ate some good Southern food. If the above sign doesn't make you salivate, then I don't know what will. For reference, I had the crawfish etoufee. Almost as good as my great-aunt used to make it, and that's high praise.

The pig races at the county fair.

Elijah getting up close and familiar with a burro, and then a fawn. He also patted some goats and got to see some pigs, chickens and a llama.


It was great to get back to the county fair and interesting to see it from a parent's perspective. I saw it from a child's perspective, going on the younger rides, then from a teenager's perspective, meeting up with friends and trying our best to be at the top of the ferris wheel when the fireworks started, and as a young adult, more interested in the exhibitions and wilder rides.

On Thursday we got together with 'Realma' from WA, an old family friend, and Elijah's great-aunt and had lunch in Fairfax.

On Friday, Dad, B and I took the cap and ball revolver to the range to try it out.

Lots of recoil, as you can probably tell. The black powder wasn't as smoky as we thought it might be. Oh, and my aim is still decent, in case you were wondering.


Today we celebrated the 4th in style with a barbecue at our friends' house. Here's Elijah exploring the garden with his grandpa in tow while the rest of us enjoy iced tea and food at the table.


B with Breezy. Dad went home with some pheasant courtesy of the dog above, she's a good hunter like her cousin Pepper.

That's all I have time for tonight.

Random Update

Been hot here, 90F+ in the full sun, but only about 20% humidity, so it's very pleasant.

I plan to try and scan in some old family photos this week sometime if I can, so stay tuned if you're interested.

Also, green tea ice cream tastes absolutely amazing and I hope I can find it when I go back to England.