Day 243 | Cheese? Yes, Please!

No trip to Wisconsin is complete without a stop at the local cheese factory. We squeezed in a visit just in time before we head back to the District.

Thanks, Wisconsin Dairy State Cheese Company, for sharing your yummy products with us. 

Day 242 | Card Crafts

Bibi and I had a great time crafting some fun cards last night. She showed me the wonders of using the Cricut cutting machine. That thing can do anything! I even found a bird design to make all my dreams come true.

Thanks, Bibi, for sharing your expertise, time, and oodles of supplies with me! Can't wait to do it again. 

Day 241 | History Museum: Wisconsin Version

The museum bug even bites when we're on vacation. Today, Grandma Bibi took us to the Museum of Natural History. It was quite an impressive show of animals, eggs, and fossils. Chase really enjoyed collecting the animal trading cards scattered around the exhibits and Robbe just loved having so much open space to crawl around in and so many fun ledges to pull himself up on.

A great way to spend a chilly (5 degrees!) morning. 

Day 240 | A Gift to Myself

I love having my fingernails painted. It just makes me so happy. What doesn't make me happy? The fact that they chip almost immediately.

So I finally succumbed to the hype and tried a gel manicure today. Will it last three weeks? Only time will tell, but it looks pretty great for the moment. Will it ruin my nails? I'm not going to worry about that-they have never been that fantastic. Will it become a new obsession? Maybe, just maybe. 

*Note: I was fully intending to give this to myself as a gift (hence the title) but Chris's mom swooped in and treated me to a late Christmas present. So sweet and greatly appreciated. 

Day 239 | Chris's Favorite Thing

After sharing the boys' favorite things a few posts ago, it's time to highlight Chris's favorite thing: the day after sandwich.

It includes all the fixings from the traditional Thanksgiving dinner (and Christmas dinner this year) all in one sandwich for lunch the next day. That means turkey, potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, and gravy all piled high. Not my idea of delicious but if it makes him happy, I'm happy. 

Day 238 | Merry Christmas: Part 2

We enjoyed another lovely family Christmas celebration tonight. This time with Chris's family. It was a wonderful celebration of giving, receiving, and eating. Obviously lots of eating. If only the other third of the brother trio could have been here with his family, it would have been perfect. 

It's truly a blessing to have family that you can call friends and that you completely enjoy spending time with. We hit the lottery with all our family: immediate and extended.

*Note: I almost missed another post today. My schedule is just all out of whack! And maybe the two hours of putting together an awesome zoo for Chase added to the rush to get right into bed afterward...

Day 237 | Merry Christmas

Merry merry Christmas. I'm wishing all of you love, magical moments, and family fun on this festive day. 

*Due to lots of quality family time and some pretty extreme exhaustion (have I mentioned how I'm not cut out to sleep with a baby in the same room as me?), I missed yesterday's blog post. The horror! I'll just tell myself that it was my day off for the holiday. Hope you don't mind. 

Day 236 | Christmas is Here

We officially made it to our family Christmas festivities. After another four hours in the car (not my favorite, for the record), we're settling in and loving the quality time with our extended family.

Chase was reunited with his best friend, Frosty (who is about the same size as our toddler), and both boys have been enjoying the extra attention (surprise, surprise). And the photo on the bottom-right is Chase's vacation bed/pseudo-life raft. It's been a big hit. 

Day 235 | Ho Ho Ho

Chase finally put in his gift requests to Santa today...just under the wire (but not entirely our fault).

He was a champ! Let's just say that the last two years didn't go well with our friend, Santa. Lots of crying. Not this time: he was all business and even plastered on a smile for the photo. He recited all his requests without hesitation and even put in an order for Robbe (according to the letters that we wrote).

And Robbe? No crying there either, and he went right to the strange man with a crazy beard. I'd like to think it's because Chase was by his side (that's sweet, right?) and not that he'd just go to anyone. 

One more check off our holiday to-do list!

Day 234 | A Tradition Continues

The cousins got together for their annual gingerbread house construction today. Chase got pretty into it. His patience for these kinds of tasks always shocks me. His jobs today included: unwrapping the peppermint wheels, making marshmallow snowmen, adding smarties to the roofline, and sneaking just a couple sweets.

And the house turned out just perfect. 

Day 233 | Treats Galore!

We have been innundated with delicious treats since our arrival yesterday. Is it possible to survive only on sugar for two weeks? We're going to find out.

And, as it turns out, the pretzel hugs my family has been making for years is the perfect toddler activity. Chase loved unwrapping the hugs and placing them meticulously inside the pretzel circles. He even helped place the M&M on the melted hugs after they had cooled for just a minute. Such a big helper!

Here's the "recipe". Delicious? No question!

Day 232 | All Packed Up

...and ready to go!

We made it thorough one Uber ride to the airport, two flights (but we didn't de-plane in between), and one long car ride to Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Whew. It's hard to say who is most exhausted. I'm leaning towards me. 

Day 231 | Holiday House Scenes

One of the hardest things about visiting family over the holidays (aside from braving the airports during the busiest time of the year) is leaving our own house behind. Oftentimes, I don't spend much energy decorating because it's just not worth it for the couple weeks we're home in December. Thanks to our holiday party (and mostly my mom!), this year was a totally different story. We're bursting at the seams with holiday cheer.

Enjoy the collage above depicting the festive environment that's been getting us in the Christmas spirit all season. I'll miss my own tree, mantle, and decorations as we jump on a plane but I'll take family over holiday isolation any day!

Day 230 | Rec Center Revelry

We finally had the perfect day to get out and experience the Tiny Tots! program at our local recreation center. To call it intense would be a big understatement. It was Chase, Robbe, me and about 30 daycare toddlers with a handful of their caregivers. Whoa.

It took Chase a bit of time to warm up to the chaos but Robbe was right at home. He got lots of attention from the kiddos, as usual, and maneuvered the crowd shockingly well. 

One of the highlights for me? Watching the kids flock to the stereo every time a Frozen song came on (see bottom-right photo). Seriously, they paid no attention to any other Disney song but as soon as they recognized the beginning of a Frozen song, it was like a magnet pulling them in. They went crazy. It was more than a bit amusing. 

Day 229 | Favorite Things Tees: Part 2

The boys love their new t-shirts (remember this project?). Ok, "love" might be a bit strong, but Chase at the very least is very excited.

Day 228 | Christmas Came Early

We head out for our Wisconsin Christmas adventure on Friday so we decided to celebrate our family Christmas yesterday in order to limit the number of gifts we have to haul back and forth.

It was a lovely evening of gift giving. The boys' faces were plastered with smiles and Chase was just as excited about watching Chris and me open gifts as he was about ripping into his own (ok, maybe not just as excited, but close). 

A few highlights? 

1. Chase got a shed for his trains! I asked him this morning if we should call it a shed or a garage and he replied, "let's call it Tidmouth Station" (where Thomas sleeps). It's a big hit. 

2. Robbe opened up a toy chair. It's the updated version of a chair that Chase loves at his grandparents' house so we knew it would be well received. And it's a good thing Robbe is willing to share. 

3. Chris managed to completely blindside me again this year (two years in a row, for the record) with a super sweet and thoughtful gift: a printed book of my first 100 blog posts! The best, right? It's so much more enjoyable to flip through a hard-copy version of the posts than sit in front of a computer and click through the links. I'm a lucky lady.

Day 227 | Santa Fail

 

Our big plans to meet the jolly big guy today failed. Apparently even Santa gets sick (or at least that's what they said). Luckily there's a great train display around the National Christmas Tree so that was a fine consolation prize. You heard right, more trains. We've got to have exhausted all the train exhibits by now, right? We'll see...

Day 226 | More Trains? Yes, Please!

We managed to find yet another holiday train exhibit to enthrall sweet Chase. Today's excursion took us to the College Park Aviation Museum for their "Holiday Trains and Planes" display. They put on a good show and Chase could not have enjoyed it more. That kid definitely loves LOVES trains. Thomas even made an appearance, if you can believe our good fortune. Robbe had a good time, too, although his activity of choice was pulling himself up on a little riser. Whatever it takes.

The top-right photo is from my muffin date with my big man this morning. We snuck away to Union Market for some Christmas shopping. The photo was too cute not to share.

Day 225 | Toddler Friends

Toddler friends are the cutest. Seeing them interact (play, resolve conflict, give hugs, hold hands, etc) is just the sweetest thing ever.

Thanks for coming to play today, John. So glad we're friends. We'll miss you until next year. 

Day 224 | Homemade Baby Food

'Tis the season for over eating, right? The perfect time of year to share my eight tips for making homemade baby food for your wee one.

1.  Boil baby, boil: Boiling is the easiest way to turn raw or frozen veggies into pureed magic for your little one.Bring a large pot of water to boil and then add the veggies for just a few minutes until tender.
2. Economies of scale: Make several batches one right after the other. Use one big pot and keep the water boiling, use a strainer to fish out the food, and only wash the blender once (rinse out in between foods and wash at the end). Just remember to do any new food as the last batch in case the baby has a reaction (you don't want to taint the other batches).
3. Ice cube trays: The easiest way to portion-ize, freeze, and store your labor of love.
4. Keep food separate: As tempting as it might be to make peas+pears or mango+sweet potatoes, freeze the foods separate and mix them when you serve them. You'll have so many more options for combinations this way.
5. Multitask: It's definitely preferred to do several batches at once (see #2) but don't hesitate to throw on a pot of boiling water while you're preparing dinner or doing dishes to knock out one batch of green beans.
6. Make smart choices: Sometimes making the food is more trouble than its worth. Prunes, in my opinion, is one of those foods. Rehydrating before blending is not my idea of a time saver so I will continue to buy this yummy fruit. When you buy, though, keep an eye on the ingredient list. There are some good options on the shelves today without a lot of additives but there are some nasty ones, too (think tuna oil...yuck!), just be vigilant. Another good buy? Applesauce. Although making applesauce is super easy, you can buy organic, unsweetened, no additive applesauce for so cheap that it's not worth the energy (in my opinion) to make it. If it's too thick for your little one at the beginning (it was for mine), throw it in your blender to smooth it out a bit more. I didn't even need to add water.
7. Invest in good equipment: Chris and I rarely splurge on anything so when we do, it's been well-researched and vetted. One of our best splurges (and definitely the best when it comes to making baby food) has been the Vitamix. Expensive, but worth it. This thing can blend up anything: frozen fruit, raw oatmeal (you don't have to buy the boxed variety), and thick starches (think: sweet potatoes). Other good buys? These ice cube trays (they have covers) and a strainer like this.
8. The wonder of frozen fruit: Frozen fruit is the most economical, easiest way to make baby food. It's already cut, peeled, pitted, etc. Again, check the ingredient list, though. Sometimes there's added sugar (which never makes sense to me!). I just defrost the fruit on the counter for a few hours, throw it in the blender, and pour into ice cube trays. Ta da! Done.

Day 223 | Dear Santa

If we can kick this nasty cold bug by the weekend, we have big plans to make a trip to see Santa. That means we have to get prepared, so Chase and I wrote his letter to the big guy this morning.

Here's what it says (in case you can't make it out):

Dear Santa,

I have been very good this year. I'm a big helper to my mom and dad and I'm very patient with my little brother.

I would like the following for Christmas:

1. Thomas boat
2. Watch
3. Camera
4. Fruit

Merry Christmas!

Afterward, we decided that we should probably write one for Robbe, too, since he's too little to do it himself. 

Here's Robbe's letter:

Dear Santa,

My little brother, Miles, has been really good this year, too.

If it's not too much trouble, he would like a toothbrush. And maybe a surprise. He likes surprises.

Merry Christmas!

Dr. McKnight suggested we get Robbe a toothbrush for his two new teeth and Chase took that suggestion seriously. Straight to Santa for that request. 

Day 222 | Want to be Our Neighbor?

This massive renovation project has been going on right outside our windows for a few months now. Last week they demolished the roof and this week the second floor went up. Crazy, right? I'm so interested in the final product.

So, I repeat, do you want to be our neighbor?

Day 221 | A Little Distraction

Rough morning for this family: I think Miga is the only one who slept well (and not all Robbe's fault this time), we're back to our solo existence after all our family left (so sorry to see them go), and it's cold outside.

After a particularly rough night, though, getting out of the house is a must. No one handles being sleepy and stir-crazy well (at the very least I can speak for myself), so we bundled up and headed to the library. Chase had a blast practicing his colors with Elmo (I overheard him laughing out loud several times) and Robbe enjoyed exploring every nook and crannie. 

It was just he distraction we all needed to power through until naptime (for all of us!). 

Day 220 | Post-Party Pleasures

A few of today's joys after yesterday's celebration:

1. Beautiful flowers: my mom and dad gave us one arrangement, a couple of sweet friends brought two bouquets, and my mom braved our holly tree (we have a holly tree!) to round out the collection. These flowers make me SO happy. 

2. A clean kitchen: something about the accomplishment of cleaning up a huge mess that feels so good. 

3. Leftovers: as I mentioned yesterday, we had lots LOTS of food left over. I guess that's better than the alternative, right? Well today, the amount of food left over is an amazing reward. Snacks for days, ham for an egg scramble for lunch (amazing!), and sweets that I should be avoiding but are too good to pass up. Yes, sir, I will take another handful of chex mix. 

Day 219 | Holiday Shindig

We hosted a little holiday party tonight and I am exhausted. It was a wonderful evening full of friends and family, yummy food, and festive cocktails (thanks to my bartender husband).

The kitchen is semi-cleaned up, the food is semi-eaten (why didn't people eat more?!?), and I'm semi-awake. Well worth all the time and energy dedicated to the event, though. Couldn't have been more enjoyable.

Special thanks to my mom and dad for helping out in innumerable ways to make the evening a success. We are grateful.

Day 218 | Holiday Train Tour

It was time to take our holiday spirit on the road. Off we went to the Botanic Garden for their annual Season's Greenings exhibit. The trains (Thomas even made an appearance!) and the foliage didn't disappoint again. Definitely a must-visit holiday stop in this city.

From there, we headed over to Union Station to check out its holiday model train display. A significant step down from the trains we saw earlier in the morning, but still a festive excursion. We even made time to overlook the real trains loading up passengers.

I wouldn't say it was Chase's perfect day but with all the trains, Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa in attendance, and lots of holiday activities, it was pretty close.

Day 217 | The Taste of Christmas

I managed to squeeze in baking a batch of my favorite Christmas cookies into today's chaos (school for Chase, airport trip to pick up Dad, lots of cleaning, etc.). They are perfectly unique and festive for this time of year.

Here's the recipe but I use craisens and orange zest as a substitute for the cherries and lime. 

Highly, highly recommended. 

Day 216 | Felted Acorns

Aren't these the cutest things ever? I'm obsessed with them.

A little pre-planning (think acorn hat hunting with Chase), an experienced felter (that's you, mom), roving, hot water, and Dawn dish soap. That's it. 

Take a bit of the roving, get it wet under hot water, add a teeny bit of dish soap and roll. Squeeze out soap/water, rinse a bit, keep rolling. Eventually you end up with a cute little oval of felted magic. Let it dry and find the perfect acorn hat to fit on it. Add a little hot glue to make it stick. 

You might be wondering what I'm going to do with these...sorry, that's a surprise. 

Day 215 | Sock Snowmen

Chase got in on the action with our latest craft: sock snowmen.

I won't reveal who is receiving these beauties, but it's safe to say they probably aren't checking the blog. 

The snowmen are made from baby socks (white for the body and colored for the hats) stuffed with rice (which Chase was an expert at and kept him very focused) and then decorated with googlie eyes and a scrap-fabric scarf. Ta da!

The cutest snowmen around. 

Day 214 | Yard Work in December?

Yes, sir!

It was 70 degrees today so we took full advantage and spent the morning outside. Chase helped weed, sweep, and plant all before we headed to the courts for some pretty intense toddler tennis with our friends. 

Can you believe this is December?