Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Things I say that make Orion laugh


For Dan, and anyone else who is amused by my antics as a Mama. (I'm the tickle monster in this house, just like my daddy was.)

"blah, blah, blah" (Dan started this one, months ago.)
"blue, blue, blue,
"smelly, smelly, smelly"
"zzzzzzzzzip!" (when zipping up p.j.s)
"Mooooooo"
"Moo, Moo, MooMooMOOOMOOMOOMOOO"
"I don't know, do I? PIU PIU PIU PIU" (me imitating Tina Fey imitating Sarah Palin. I don't think he gets the satire, just the funny ending. For that matter, I don't know if I get it...)
The eensy weensy spider and animal sounds are HUGE right now; peekaboo is a bit passe' but still fun
"aaaaaiiii pow! pow! pow!" (me being a boxer)
"gallopagallopagallopa gallop!"
"loco mama! loco mama! loco mama!"

I think that last one just about sums it up.

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Orion's first Thanksgiving 2008


Grandma Susie came for Thanksgiving, along with my brother and sisters. Orion was happy to see Grandma, until she picked him up--that was suddenly way too familiar for him. (Don't worry, mom, he fears the immersion blender much much more. A new and fearsome development--I don't know if I can make potato-leek soup for a while. He also fears "what does a lion say?" I think those are all the frightening things for our li'l O.) Aforementioned siblings, some of whom are captured incriminatingly:

And le fam. Thanks for coming out to visit, and cooking and entertaining!

Now, who's that handsome guitar-pickin' devil? Orion remains fascinated by the guitar, climbing all over the case, where he especially likes the buckles and clasps.
He also loves piggyback rides. Here I am a-ridin' too close to the camera--it's an action shot. Yee-haw! Gallop-a-gallop-a-gallop!
Grandma Susie solidifying the initially uneasy friendship.
And in a break from tradition, I made a cherry pie for Thanksgiving. No pie I make is the same, but I think this is the first floral. (Plaid, of course, is most common, but maybe the concord grape pie was moire, and maybe I'll try houndstooth next, or perhaps toile de joie.)

Before, above, and after oven and dinner:

Saturday, November 22, 2008

A November Musing

Life is good, this mild New England autumn (no, Connecticut is not a mid-atlantic state!). Squirrels have filled their leafy larders, Obama gathers his cabinet, and Superman came to visit our neighborhood this Halloween. The neighborhood children grow older, more skeptical (isn't that just your Dad?), and more doting on the (third-)youngest neighborhood baby. (yes, there are many babies in our neighborhood among my friends. Congratulations, if this applies to you, my readers.) Yes, the weather and the economy are getting chilly, but Orion's apple cheeks, newfound skills (he was caught on camera eating our (old, dead) camera), and "Signor Dentini" smile keep us happy these days.





The day after Halloween we went to NY to visit friends; here's Orion too asleep to appreciate the starry sky and his alter alias in Grand Central. Below that he's playing pretty genially with his "cousin" Henry.


Caught eating the camera on camera! Sneaky little mangiatutto.
Another favorite pasttime: raiding kitchen cabinets.

And finally, a tribute to the pie-maker who succeeded in making a Bridget Riley Concord Grape pie. Only in November in New England! Cheers to Nana! Happy Thanksgiving, doting readers!

Friday, October 31, 2008

Halloween Costume and Endorsement


Superman and Obama Mama. Together we can be a force for good! Orion is voting for Superman (a.k.a. Grandpa Joe) we think, and I am voting for Obama. With that, I'll stop being political on this family blog, but if you want to know my many (many) reasons why I think Obama'll be a really terrific president, call me. A large factor (besides the fact that I agree with his political philosophies): his humility. No more hubris in the WH for me.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Orion's First Autumn, and Family Visits


We've all been enjoying the autumnal season, which has brought mild weather, arboreal color, and family visits. Auntie Joni was the first to arrive, as a peripatetic musician, and we liked hearing her play with the NHSO as well as watching her play with Orion. This latter saw many firsts this month, such as eating leaves, saying MaMa (MaMaMaMa--so probably not referring to moi, but I display much positive reinforcement when it occurs), crawling (front-front, back-back), and pulling his wee wobbily self up. Like so (one of the first occurances):

He now has many barred surfaces to raise himself, since besides the crib and banister we now have baby gates installed (thanks Dad!!). Here's the little O with his fascinating friend, Calamity Jane. She's remarkably patient with him, particularly since his favorite form of affection for her is a loving head-butt.

Another first is the discovery that Orion can entertain himself and his neighbors at restaurants with rice. Notice the floor--it's like there was a wedding at Bankok Gardens!


As parenthetically mentioned previously, my dad came to town, and tried to introduce Orion to the pleasures of coffee. (Just kidding, mom! the mug's empty.)
While on a hike, Orion and I discovered an unusual but very fetching species of tree sloth.
Aforesaid sloth, with unslothlike alacrity, was kind enough to take our picture amid foliage.
And here's my other sister, amid other foliage, during a truly gorgeous sunset excursion to a local CT orchard, where we picked a few piefulls of apples.
Here's them good ol' apple-pickers now, say howdy.
Ah, New England Autumns! We salute thee. Just breathe in that crisp-apple air.

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Pardon our (star) dust

as I wrestle with blogger. And don't hold your breath. Construction takes time--consider the egg broken, and the omelette not yet assembled.

Eight Month Pictures!


Now a short interlude, before we return to Orion, the main attraction. Here is our garden in late late summer; thanks to our garden partner family, we've been able to grow many delicious veggies. I just threw the last tomato salad together yesterday; and butternut squashes wait for their turn in a soup later this week. The corn, perhaps you can see, was not a success.

But this volunteer pumpkin was! (It climbed over the fence--now we have a jack-o-lantern possibility from our own yard--and we'll carve it with the neighborhood kids.)

OK, back to the li'l O. He has mastered pulling himself by his arms, and recognizes that there is a more efficient way to get around--probably he'll coordinate his arms and legs before we have a chance to babyproof. I am TRYING to post a video...