Spaghetti Dinner

Tonight was spaghetti dinner.  Eileen has recently started eating more of actual dinner with us versus straight baby food.  Despite an early protest from Linus, spaghetti is a crowd-pleaser for toddlers, babies, and mommies alike.

This mealtime was interesting as it provided a case study in boy toddlers and girl babies (stop reading now if you are easily offended by gender stereotypes).

Exhibit A:  Baby Girl.  Age 10 months tomorrow.

You will notice that while there is food and sauce on her face, it has been kept to a minimum.  She actually went about licking the spaghetti before ingesting.

Exhibit B:  Toddler Boy.  Age 34.5 months (almost 3 years)

 

His face was lathered in sauce almost from the get go.  Notice the fork laying unused.  He opted for double-fisting his meal.

Food was devoured loudly, with many growls.  I swear I fed him earlier in the day.

Eileen was shocked and appalled by her brother's table manners.

For comparison, Linus at 11 months eating spaghetti

My original plan had been to bathe Eileen first and then clean up Linus.  In the end, Eileen was merely wiped down with a wash cloth while Linus was rushed immediately from the table to tub lest he leave a red saucy trail in his path.

So tonight I was left to wonder if this episode of eating spaghetti is characteristic of the differences between genders, or just my children.

Adventures with Beth, an epic tale mostly in pictures

My older sister, Beth, and her son, Dylan, came up from Portland to celebrate our brother, Tim's birthday, and then to stay and hang for a few days.  We've kept busy to say the least.

First adventure, the Seattle Aquarium.

a very cute jellyfish

A post nap trip to Golden Gardens.

Extremely cool new pirate playground

sliding cousins

"I'm gonna catch you Bef"

A little beach time

This morning started with the first day of preschool for Linus.

I asked him to smile.  He said no.  So I asked him to give me a sad face.  He complied.

"I.am.a.robot."

Linus had no qualms about me leaving him at school.  He painted me a beautiful picture which inspired me to have a fall themed afternoon.  We put out ceramic pumpkins and leaf garlands and then did some cookie baking.

While the cookies baked, we painted pumpkins.

Eileen, for her part, decided to finally start crawling. She skipped army crawling entirely, preferring to wait until she could do it properly.

Perhaps, the most epic part of the visit has been Beth's and my night out to Kirkland.  We had very strong drinks and dessert at a sushi bar and then went to Beijing Herbal Foot Massage.  The place looks like the kind of massage parlor that offers a happy ending.  They are open until 11 pm and for $25 you get a full body massage.  The whole experience was a little surreal.  I had been there once before and did not recall the massage getting so "intimate."  Beth and I, a little drunk and running on a massage high, couldn't stop giggling afterwards.  We stumbled to the QFC for crackers and coffee.  We're pretty sure the women in the aisle with us thought we were high.  It was a night out to be remembered.

It's been a really fun visit and I will be sad to see them go home tomorrow.  I feel so blessed that I can count my sisters as two of my closest friends.

New Shopping Partner?

I love to window shop.  I especially love going into boutiques and small independent businesses and browsing the goods.  I try to make an effort to shop local first.  However, lazy browsing is often made difficult by impatient children.  But something is beginning to change....

I already knew that Linus loves U Village.  It is almost something of a home away from home.  It is not uncommon to hear Linus exclaim, "I have an idea.  Lets go to U VILLAGE!"  with arm raised and index finger pointed for emphasis.   Recently, he has been asking to go more frequently and then requesting specific stores.  I am not sure which one of us loves Pottery Barn Kids more.

Today we were walking back from the library and I decided to pop into a cute little store, Tasty, on Phinney Ridge.  As I perused the shop, Linus delicately looked as well.  When the shop owner came over, he very earnestly and politely told her, "I like your stuff."  I admit to doing a double take.  The store, which features work from local artists and designers, has lots of breakables.  Linus went around the store explaining to me which ones were breakable and which things he liked.

Then it got weirder.  As we were finishing up, he told me he wanted to go to the mall.  SAY WHAT?  We never go to the mall  Barnes and Noble, yes.  Nordstrom when shoes are needed. Mall, no.  I reserve time at the mall for when he is in the care of someone else. 

I feel like the skies are clearing.  I almost don't know what to think.  Could stress free shopping adventures be in my future?  Could I actually plan afternoons of strolling through the shops of Ballard?  I am not getting my hopes up, but I am excited by the possibilities.

Linus E. Dimock, age 2.5.  Loves University Village, free samples at the Farmers Market, shopping local, and trips to the mall.

Escape to Victoria

This weekend Dave and I escaped to Victoria, BC.  I bought us a weekend away via the Victoria Clipper for Dave's 30th Birthday.  He was totally surprised.  I felt like a romantic weekend, no matter how badly needed, was not manly enough for a major birthday like 30.  I decided that nothing sounded more manly than ziplining!

My sister, Sally, was kind enough to watch my children while we were gone.  It was the first time I have left Eileen overnight and the longest I have ever been away from Linus.  Dave and I left early Saturday morning to hitch a ride aboard the Clipper.  Guess who has two thumbs and likes to get seasick?  This girl!  Yup.   I totally puked.  I didn't used to get seasick, but over the last few years it seems to happen every time I get on a boat (kayaks, canoes, and large ferries excluded).  Am I fun or what?

We spent the first day enjoying exhibits at the Royal BC Museum as well indulging in some shopping and fine dining.  We even stumbled upon a fringe theater festival and took in a show.  We had to wait until Sunday to go ziplining.  We went to Adrena Line in Sooke, BC.

It's a pretty big deal that I went ziplining.  I refuse to go on rollercoasters and have a healthy fear of heights.  Just the very bumpy ride on the trail to the zipline course in an old army vehicle had me feeling nervous.  After some basic instruction and a ride on the "bunny slope,"  we went to our first line.  It's name is Commitment because once you go on it, it's too late to turn back.

I was in no hurry to try so I let Dave go before me.

He did not have the same apprehensions I did.

A very long suspension bridge.  The helmet won't save me if I fall.  The helmet is really just to protect my head from getting whacked by the ziplines.

Rockin' my helmet.

It got slightly less scary as we went along.  The longest zipline was 1000 ft and 150 ft off the ground.  One of the ziplines you couldn't even see the end point so you just hoped for the best when stepping off the platform.

The couple that ziplines together, stays together :)

Officially a ziplining pro!

I survived my first ziplining experience.  I never did try any of the fancier tricks they showed us like hanging upside down.  I was pretty proud of myself that I was willing to do it one handed by the last zipline (there were 8 in total). 

I hope we are able to go ziplining again sometime.  It was so nice to feel like our old pre-child selves for a little while.  It was also great to just get away for a little bit.  Victoria would have been a completely different experience with children in tow.   I missed my babies terribly and was reminded how much I loathe pumping.  I am totally indebted to my sister for watching the kids.  Hopefully, we can return the favor some day.  I look forward to our next adventure with just the two of us, but for now I think I am going to snuggle my babies just a little bit more.

Happy Birthday Dave!

My husband, Dave, finally turned 30 today.  Yes. I dated down.  I like to remind him that if he had been born a day later (his bday, Aug.31st, is the school cutoff date) we never would have dated because at age 20, it is difficult for a girl to date two years younger.  Anyways, I felt like I wanted to make it a little extra special.  Thank goodness I had Linus to help.

This morning Linus excitedly told Dave, "We got you a present! It's called shoes!"  Needless, to say I let Dave open one of his presents this morning--a new pair of hiking shoes.

 Eileen is sick with roseola (notice the rashy, blotchy face) so she cheered us on from a distance.

 Linus was ready to bake.

While we waited for the cake to bake, Linus had big plans for the party.  Balloons, a crown.  I waited until naptime to frost the cake and put up the balloons.

By request, we had dinner at Wingdome. Birthday crown stayed at home.  I gotta say that Wingdome was a pretty good deal.  I got the bag o'burgers.  For $3 I got a brown sack with 3 sliders and a bunch of fries (just thrown in, no additional wrapping).  Linus hardly ate.  He had cake on the brain.

 Linus couldn't contain himself and decided to just go ahead and blow out the candles for Dave.

 Eileen was a big fan of cake.  Big fan.

 Until we made her wait in between bites.

Personally, I think the best part of this birthday is the main present.  This weekend the two of us are going away (no kids!) to Victoria B.C. and going ziplining!!  Romance and adventure.  After a month of sickness (did I mention that Linus started coughing today and I feel a sore throat coming on?), we deserve a break.

From the Mouths of Babes in August

Linus:  "Cheer up mommy.  You will be fine in Bug World. You will see. It's easy."  (during a recent trip to Woodland Park Zoo)

Linus: "I'm going to cut you up in pieces.  You are not going to be a big mommy.  You will be a little mommy."

Linus: "I don't want to go home! I want to stay here ever ever and not go home. Never."

Linus: "You will be angry with the police."  (he means that I will be in trouble with the police)

Summer Vacation?

The Dimocks apparently missed the memo about what summer vacation is supposed to be.  It has been no picnic (although there has been a lot of picnics).

1.  Lousy weather.  It isn't summer when it is a rare day that it gets above 70 degrees.

2.  My Hawaii "vacation" has been reclassified as a stressful trip during which I got a tan and went swimming.

3.  First Monday of August -- Linus gets diagnosed with ringworm. Yuck.  All trips to pools cancelled.

4.  Second Monday of August -- trip to Portland cut short when Linus diagnosed with hand foot and mouth disease.  Even worse, he gave it to his cousin and uncle.

5.  Third Monday of August -- nothing horrible happened!

6.  My sister and her family come to visit.  Ten minutes before they arrive, Linus pukes.  He then pukes another two times before the night is though.

7.  Fourth Monday of August -- after waking up not feeling great, Dave and I both came down with a nasty case of viral gastroenteritis.  I don't want to go into too many details, but you can look up the symptoms.  Needless to say, I lost 4 pounds in less than 24 hours.  Thank God for my friend, Colleen, who brought us Gatorade and saltines last night, and for my mom, who risked infection, to take care of us and the kids today.

8.  Today, Tuesday --While battling a fever, puking, and severe intestinal discomfort this morning,  Dave and I attempted to clean the house before the appraiser came over at 9 am to appraise the house for a refinance (the appraiser was scheduled yesterday before puking commenced).  She really liked the house so I can only hope that bodes well for us.

It's now Tuesday evening.  Dave and I can finally eat food and it feels glorious.  This has been a lousy "summer".  September can't come soon enough.