the remaking of a kitchen

i had a delightful video call last night with jewlee, sarah and siena. it was such fun and it seemed like siena was getting the idea that there really was someone on the screen talking to her.
the thrill for me was seeing siena figure out for the first time how to give those sweet baby kisses to her mom. sarah has been giving her kisses which she really likes and the kisses seem to calm her when she's upset. once siena figured it out she just kept kissing sarah's neck which was very very sweet.
siena obviously enjoys attention from both jewlee and sarah and is smiling and enjoying herself more these days. i can't wait to see them all in person.

Labels: auntie jewlee, kisses, sarah and siena, video call

we got together at j and j's motorhome after the game to drown our sorrows and do a bunch more visiting. on sunday, j and j joined us at the nebraska history museum and that was fun. we found my 5 year old mother sitting in her playroom in the albion house. what a hoot. after all that hard work we headed to the unl ice cream store for double dips and then on to eat in the haymarket. good food, good friends. good fun.
on monday we had a lazy start and then to omaha for don's 2 week check up with the doc, more game discussion and then headed home. a long weekend, and a lovely one.

Labels: john and julie, more fun, ne hx museum, the band

we are just back from a terrific weekend in nebraska. well mostly terrific. the game was pretty ugly, but we did break a record! not that any one is excited about 8 turnovers, but... the rest of the weekend was lovely. we knew john and julie were coming and julie alerted others to that fact, so we met up with dave and lea, john and lois and had lots of fun. on friday night we headed to misty's with a great number of other fans. we were told there would be an hour and 45 minute wait, and believe it or not, we agreed to that. the guys took off to check out the parking spot that john and julie had been given. it took most of the allotted time for them to accomplish that task. in the same time, we talked about a lot of everything and met some other fans, took photos and met herbie. we had a lot of fun and got in some good visiting.

Labels: dave and lea, herbie, john and julie, john and lois

this was a busy busy week. i returned home from a visit in california and then had a one day turn around before we left for nebraska on wednesday. i slept in so it was a late start, and although we arrived in the midst of the commuter traffic it wasn't an issue.
don's cataract surgery was thursday morning and that went well, so we went for breakfast after wards. i was able to catch up with my with my friends lea and janelle and had a fun visit with them. we haven't seen each other for several years so that was great.
we went for the post surgical visit on friday and don was pronounced healthy and well enough to attend the saturday football game. i went off to lunch with friends kay lynn, midge and liz and we talked and laughed for almost 3 hours. then don and i were off to lincoln for the rest of the weekend. the game was not a fun time although i got to see friends lea and dave and ryan who was home for the weekend. really nice....that part anyway. gotta believe the team remains a work in progress! sigh.
on sunday met up with kari and her family at holmes park and joined in the making strides against breast cancer with kari's team. we were invited to brennan's birthday celebration but felt we needed to get on the road instead. we arrived at 9 pm, a good 7 hours drive.
today it was yard stuff....don mowed and i pulled out the dead tomato and pepper plants, and dug up my garlic. i moved all the pots (with dead plants) to the concrete thing for delivery to the shed in the next few days. tonight is an edina reads presentation at the library, so i am helping with that.....kao kalia yang reading from her book THE LATE HOMECOMER.

Labels: cataract, family, friends, stride to prevent breast cancer

i had a long plane ride home through phoenix. because of early morning snow in minneapolis, planes were running late all day. i spent an extra hour and then some waiting around the gate.
this is what the deck looked like when i arrived. all the ginkgo leaves fell in my absence, and the maple tree in front is showing very red while the one in back is just beginning to turn. don brought in all the green tomatoes and to be red peppers that are still green, and those plants now have that melted look that happens with a freeze. our growing season seems so very short!
it was very cold, so i was glad to have several layers under my raincoat and really delighted to find gloves in the pockets!

Labels: home and snow, red peppers, tomatoes and cukes

sarah and i gave siena a bath.....she was a little nervous at first but seemed to enjoy being down in the water after she adjusted. i shampooed her hair and amazed sarah when i really scrubbed with a washcloth. siena seemed just fine with the whole procedure and was not upset when we got her out of the water and wrapped her in dryer warmed towels. she seems to like being clean. :)
when we were drying her hair it really did look a bit curly. these are post bath photos taken as she peered over david's shoulder.

Labels: bath, curls?, enjoyment

siena enjoys her play area on the window seat too and i have a little video to prove it. her oohs and aahs have expanded to little squeals that promise to become giggles very soon!

Labels: playing, window seat

siena with just a little help from her dad held on to one of the rings on her play station. it was really cute....she kept looking at her left hand on the ring until her little fingers slipped off and then focused on her right hand that still held the other ring. she made some bells ring and one of these days will figure out how that happened and really have a blast!

Labels: enjoying her play station with david

jewlee was glad to see siena and the pleasure was mutual. they had a little dance to celebrate the occasion.

on saturday jewlee, emily, akai, zucca, ruby, turkey and of course felicia arrived in california after their long drive from colorado. sarah, siena and i drove to lafayette to see them and jewlee's new home. her new home is gloriously fabuloso and comfy besides. i think it is perfect for her first cali nest. :)
the dogs seemed pretty cool about the whole thing.....zucca and akai were lounging by the pool and ruby and turkey were lurking by the table and lounge chairs. jewlee gave the latter two a bath with soap and the hose....they mostly did ok with that except for ruby getting her flat snoot full of water. too funny. the big dogs took a run down the hill to relieve themselves and z was able to get her fur and tail totally entangled with brush and brambles of some sort. pretty normal. kyra had purchased bones for the 4 of them so they were gnawing away happily and pretty much thought everything was just right.
jewlee and emily seemed to have survived the drive and were chipper and funny. it was great to finally meet e after hearing about her all spring and summer. i really liked her. i haven't met kyra as yet, but hope that will happen next time i get out west. what a treat to have the 4 girls in the fam together around the pool. yay!

Labels: akai, emily, jewlee, new home, ruby, sarah and siena, turkey and zucca

siena likes her passie, but lately has appeared to search for her thumb. she is able to put most of her fist into her mouth and gums away or sucks on it. her thumb is carefully tucked within her fist, but it's getting close to popping out and getting right into her mouth!

Labels: siena, thumb

siena enjoys having her mommie read books to her. she is learning about the barnyard dance in these photos....lots of animal noises and excitement coming from sarah and rapt attention from siena. this kid is going to be an avid reader!
the last two pictures were after the reading....some big stretches and then a brilliant smile! too precious!

Labels: readubg, sarah and siena, stretching and smiling

it's been a long while between posts. again. no excuses, just life getting in the way. i am just back from a siena-sarah-david and jewlee (!) fix and have some photos to prove it! siena is big enough now that she can ride facing front in her bjorns. she seems to enjoy seeing the world go by and is quite content. it's fun to see her looking quite pleased with herself as she goes out the door.
my task while there was to get siena re-accustomed to taking a bottle. needless to say it was not on her personal list of things she enjoyed! one day i was able to get her to take about 3 ounces, with david and i tag teaming to keep her distracted when she protested. the next day, she was pretty upset and finally took a bit with david feeding her and after a walk took another bit with me wielding the bottle. between us maybe 2 1/2 to 3 ounces. it is definitely something to keep working on and hopefully she will get the idea and just deal one of these days. :) she is getting breast milk in the bottles but she would much prefer the direct method of delivery!

Labels: david and jewlee, sarah and siena

when i was in omaha on monday, judy and i went visiting. i took these two pictures of beany and little gavin who slept through the whole visit and nate eating his lunch (and feeding the dog under his chair). i also got to see diana and judy's sister linda. erika was in school so sadly i missed her.
nate is a treat.....talking and being active and amusing. he took judy and i on a tour of his yard and showed us his pumpkin patch and the flowers on it. he rather ignored the humongous pumpkin in the middle of the patch. i think he found the flowers more appealing.
the next treat was seeing several members of my old pottery class for lunch. we had a great time catching up and laughing about our times together. i saw several other people i knew at surrounding tables....too funny!

Labels: babies, beany, judy, nate and gavin, pumpkin

i made this pasta earlier in the month with the garden's bounteous harvest of juliet tomatoes. i added some sauteed onions and garlic, basil and oregano also from the garden and it was pretty tasty.

Labels: basil, juliet tomatoes, oregano, pasta

this is fun.....another skype call this time with sarah, jewlee and siena. i could hear siena "talking" and later a bit of squawking, but it was all music to my ears! sarah and jewlee were having fun playing with siena and i almost felt part of it halfway across the country. i know i need to make a plan to return....soon. i am loving being a grandma and she is growing and changing far too many miles away! i even got to talk to her....of course being there is better, but i will take what i can get!!
she is a sweetie and sarah is a great mom and jewlee the best of aunties. :) just so you know, sarah is back and she is sarah again and she is on a roll. hurrah!

Labels: jewlee, sarah and siena, squawking, talking

on saturday morning as i was trying to get myself and my belongings together so i could fly home we took a couple of photos....well david took them. it was really hard to leave. i had been wanting to come visit again since we'd had such a short time with sarah and david after siena arrived. i loved being with them and seeing how they are together and how they work as a team with siena. it's quite lovely and i was honored to be a part of it for a short time.
siena has changed so much in the 2 weeks i was there, and sarah and david are learning more each day about parenting. the thing with parenting is that no matter how much you read, how many prep classes you attend, you are still such a newbie when the baby is actually here. i think every new family goes through this situation and survives it! i know don and i did, and i know sarah and david are doing the same. it's rather a trial by fire and the sleep deprivation is just an added hurdle and a tough one when everyone is already so vulnerable. the other thing is that just as soon as you think you have a handle on doing things, things change. BUT there is a lovely baby to hold and love and that makes the battle more worthwhile.
i am already looking forward to my next visit with the three of them!
honestly, we did not plan that we would all wear stripes, but there we are! striped!

Labels: parenting, sarah and david, siena

on friday, my special treat from david and sarah was going to the university of california berkeley botanical garden. it was a lovely day for strolling through the various plantings. it's an amazing place with so may little nooks and crannies. i probably need to return some time to inspect some of the places i missed!
i love these photos of sarah and david....walking along with siena in the stroller and eating lunch. they'd purchased some delicious sandwiches at a neighborhood italian deli and we sat by a pond of water lilies to eat our lunch. we found a sweet area surrounded by coastal live oaks where we finished eating our salad.
i was fascinated by some of the plants and took a few photos of them.

Labels: sarah and david, siena, uc berkeley botanical garden

siena seems to really enjoy smiling and cooing when she is on her changing table. i suspect she can more easily see the person who is working with her at that time. it's always a fun interaction, that's for sure!
i snapped the photo of her in her stroller when we were taking a walk.....she really seems to enjoy the movement of the walk. in fact she just likes to keep moving and lets you know if you stop the stroller or sit down holding her. she wants to be on the go!
i like the one of sarah holding her with her crazy leg warmers. she just suddenly fell asleep while sarah was rocking her. a nice thing to happen!!
the one of her in her spaceport is a fave too.....she had been fussing and then fell asleep and i was unable to put her on her back easily because of the way i'd been holding her. she was just deeply asleep and stayed that way.

Labels: leg warmers, sarah and siena, stroller