I Love You My Snow-Deprived Southerners

Dear Southerners,

You guys are a hoot.  Seeing you running around all happy and under-dressed reminds me of a time when it was cool that white stuff falls from the sky.  I love that you’re making snow angels in the shallow accumulation and trying to sled even though there is grass poking up right next to your trashcan lids.  And I'm not being sarcastic here, I really do love it.

When I was a “new” New Yorker, a co-worker asked why I was using an umbrella to walk through the snow.  I shrugged and replied that I didn’t know what to do when it snowed.  And from the looks of the news stories, neither do you, friends. 

But no judgment from me.  Your road panic is totally reasonable given that there is not a plow or a pile of salt within three states of you.  I'm not laughing that you're stuck on the road or spending the night at work because that sounds pretty rotten.    

Maybe the next time I'm wrestling a stroller through the snow, I will stop and make a snow angel in your honor.  But probably not because that's messy and I have to get to places like the grocery store or work or my son’s gym class, all of which will be open.  And because I've sadly lost the "OMG there is snow falling!?!?" kind of awe.

Sincerely,

a displaced southerner who still uses an umbrella when it snows

This little Yankee has seen more snow in his 11 months than I did in my first 20 years.

January Jewels

We're (literally) plowing through the first month of the year.  Since park visits are tabled until fairer weather, we've turned to indoor activities like eating and walking practice.

So far NYC has had one semi-serious snowstorm.  Tiger Cub remained unimpressed and unwilling to wear a hat or gloves.  I like our stroller's 16" wheels so much more (if that's even possible) after driving the buggy over seemingly insurmountable mounds of snow.

Here we're practically paving our own path...

In kitchen experiments, Randy continues to make big progress in his pursuit of "whole wheat baker of the year" award.  This time it was whole wheat challa bread with raisins and it was
A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.  Braided and everything.  Even as a challa bread novice, I feel confident in saying it could give the local Jewish bakeries a run for their money.

Gym class is our most efficient mode of energy expenditure.  Here Tiger Cub turned a game of "put the ball in the basket" into "dumpster diving."

We're experimenting with baby leg warmers.  I thought about this for weeks before buying them.  Something about the concept just seemed feminine.  Maybe because they remind me so much of his grandma's Jane Fonda-inspired aerobics gear from the 1980s.  They're perfect for our cold hard floors though.  Gotta say, he wears 'em like a man!

Family brunch + new glasses.

Holiday Roundup

Randy parents came to New York for the holidays!  They celebrated Tiger Cub's first Christmas with us, shopped and cooked up a ton of awesome meals, joined us in freezing our tails off, and did a lot of baby-watching since it was this place's busy time of year.  

Here's a sampling of the eating-decorating-present opening-child entertaining bonanza that took place.

A post-church brunch.

Joy and I joined forces for an all out bake-a-thon.  I didn't photograph the goodies, but they included a few types of cookies, peppermint bark, and fudge.  Here's GiGi and her little kitchen "helper."

With about five days to spare, a real tree suddenly appeared in our home one evening.  Stringing lights on a Christmas tree is the most exciting thing EVER!

We couldn't bear to stop the fun and let Tiger Cub stay up an hour past his bedtime.

TC had his first visit with Santa, which you can read about here.

On our way to somewhere.  If you ask me, this pic looks like it could be on a page of People magazine.  "The R family was spotted out with their young son on a chilly December morning."

This one has nothing to do with the holidays, but how could I resist?

Tiger Cub found his presents to be almost as much fun as the ribbon that came around them.

Three generations of "R" men.  Randy, where's your tie???

And happy New Year to us!  Pork with the traditional accompaniments of greens and black eyed peas plus a side of squealing baby.