Weekend in Wilmington

In celebration of the landmark event of Randy having a Saturday AND Sunday off together in the same weekend we took a short trip to Wilmington, DE.  We had never been there before but it's the farthest south we can get in roughly two hours.

As true supporters of Delta and Amtrak, this was our first overnight trip out of NYC by car in the 6 1/2 years we've lived here! 
We used to take last minute weekend trips to Budapest and now we take last minute trips to Delaware.  True story.  No less ambitious, however, when this is in the backseat of the rental car:

We spent an afternoon at the local zoo.  Tiger Cub meets a real tiger!

But really, why go anywhere when the hotel room is this much fun?

Per his usual shenanigans, Tiger Cub was not up to the task of eating.  Other than an assortment of snack foods (mostly goldfish and puffs), TC ate exactly this all weekend:  a few bites of pizza, 2 french fries, and a piece of cinnamon roll.  I'm mortified.

Mmmm...coffee shop cinnamon roll!

Out with the Snow, in with Flowers, Picnics, and Sunshine Please!

Happy Spring!

I can hear much of the country breathing a collective sigh of holy-smokes-that-winter-was-bad-and-i'm-so-glad-its-over.  For perspective, I now think 35 degrees is a flippin' awesome day!

Tiger Cub himself found little use for perma-snow.  What's with sitting me down in the cold stuff mom?

New York winters are bad news for a kiddo who hates to wear a hat/hood.  And don't even think about trying to get mittens on him!

Even pushing our rockstar stroller over mounds of crusty snow is no longer entertaining.

One day the boys were so desperate for recreation outside our living room that this happened...

Yes, that would be the communal laundry room of our building.  Thank goodness for floors that slope toward a drain.

small apartment + small child + 16-ish snowstorms = creative (if questionable) parenting

Walking around on a recent warm day (as in a high of like 40 degrees) gave us hope that we will not be confined to our top floor abode forever.  Oh spring, you're not a moment too soon.

Tiger Cub Turns One!

Tiger Cub celebrated his first birthday Georgia-style at his Grandma and Grandpa's house.  It was pretty much the best weekend ever and not just because there was impending toddlerhood to celebrate.  In just a few days we saw about 75% of the people we love and care about.  

Happy 1st Birthday to our little man!

We had no theme or consistent color scheme, but lots of Mexican food and cake.

Lots of intensity here from all three of us here.  What's he going to do?  Everybody is watching. Go ahead, touch the cake Tiger Cub!

And he goes for it!

We've been very conservative about giving TC sweets for the past year so this was his first taste of sugar!  Chocolate icing is a great way to start out a sweets career, no?

All cleaned up and ready for more pictures.

  TC powing around with his canine sidekick, Jack.  They're about at the same eye level.

The R side of the family was nice enough to join us from the northern and southern corners of GA in which they reside.  While the grandparents were posing, TC was busy being a little pick-pocket.  Missing any pens Pop Doc?

Gotta love a Georgia winter...Green grass!  No coats!

We were lucky enough to see pops three days in a row!  If you want to know how to jolly up a toddler for picture-taking, check out the goofballs in the mirror.

Thanks to my parents for hosting and both of our families for coming!  Great fun was had by all!

5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Couch

How we spend our weekends...

A photo shoot attempt quickly turns chaotic...

Hanging artwork is nearly sacrificed for the cause...

Waiting them out/wearing them down...

And finally...iPad magic!

Anatomy of a Baby Walk

1.  Wide base stance.

I'm coming after you 15-month-old with a giant soccer ball!

2.  Arms out-stretched.

All the better for balancing.  Just ask a tightrope walker!

3.   The look of determination. 

Let's do this!

4.  Downward glances.

My legs are moving under me.  This is amazing!

As he neared 11 months, Tiger Cub started showing quite a bit of aptitude for embracing the two-legged lifestyle.  For the record books, I consider his official walk date 11 months + 2 days (or January 23rd).  Tiger Dad will likely argue that it happened much earlier, but it wasn't until after the 11 month mark that he truly started going places.

Now that he's been on his feet for a few weeks, Tiger Cub can do advanced activities.  Like this good time called, "I must keep shaking this box no matter what!"

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.