mommy advice? - weaning

so izzy will be 8 months at the end of this month. she is already eating solids and such, and she is loving it. she is even taking to a sippy cup very well.

unfortunately, she still likes to nurse right after eating a "regular" meal. is that normal? any advice on what i could do to make her more satiated?

i do plan on nursing for a little while longer, but i want to get a good start on the slow weaning process. if you have some great advice for me, let me know. you can email me if you don't want to post. thanks everyone. (indievisabull@gmail.com)

it's been a while, so here she is

izzy is almost 7 months now, and i haven't updated you all in a long time it seems. we had a six-month appointment recently, and here are her stats:

14.2 lbs (i know. she's a lightweight.)
26.5 inches (she's up there, so i am pretty sure she will be much taller than me.)
head circumference--this one i never remember, because i feel that her head always seems proportionate to her body. no shrunken head syndrome on this baby.

she's been eating solids now for a month. we've been taking it kind of slow, because she has allergies to milk and shrimp when i eat it. cheese, for some reason, is okay. she loves everything except for sweet potatoes, which i find strange. it's one of the more tasty veggies in baby food form, to me.

she's also crawling around a ton. she's not that great at it yet. she does the downward dog position that all you yoga fans and previously-pregnant mommies know about. the only things that will get her moving are the kitty and a tasty electrical cord.

izzy's biggest acheivements though have been her first airplane ride, first hotel stay, and moving into a new place.



here is her on the plane. she did so good. there was only a little bit of fussing, but nothing that nursing or some toy couldn't fix.

so we flew out to seattle this past week to visit pete's grandma. we call her "big irm." those who like the movie "friday" might find that funny. maybe...

anyway, izzy takes a little while to warm up to people. she has to stare you down for a while, and it takes a lot of high-pitched talking, toy distractions and smiles from mommy and daddy to assure her that new people are okay. once she warms up to you, this is the face she gives. how could you not love this girl?





izzy also got her first intro to a dog. thankfully, the dog was willing and calm. i think it was love at first sight.



all in all, she is a lot of fun. her personality now makes up for all the crying she did in the first 3 months and even some of it now. we have to redo sleep training because of the trip, but she's still an awesome baby. if i could, i would make 10,000 of her and send them out as christmas presents.

i'm a turkey

i'm doing covert ops to spy on some people thru facebook, so that is why i joined. i know, i know. total hypocrite. if you see an invite from me, just be my friend.

don't judge me.

Dear Government...

Dear Government,

I would like a bailout. I mean i haven't been the best with my money, but I haven't been the worst. I've made a few mistakes here and there. We have paid our mortgage on time, our car payment, and we still owe some student loans. But I'm thinking of taking all of our money and investing it in something really risky. It might work, or it might not. I think i might let our mortgage lapse, and our car payment. I am also thinking of defaulting on my student loans (after MBA school) . Since we will be just as efficient with our money management skills as those who make far times the amount of money we do, we deserve a bailout. I don't really feel the need to make a good argument for this request. God knows no one else has. But I just want it, so therefore I feel I deserve it. Please email me for our newest address.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Pete

get used to it

after talking to a few people lately and reading other friends' blogs who are also moms, this topic came up:

so in an economic downturn and the intro of a child into my life, i am reminded of my days growing up in the angel household. (*angel was my maiden name, if you're confused.) to preface, both of my parents worked. my dad was always blue collar worker, and my mom worked several thankless and fruitless jobs just to help make ends meet. we weren't poverty-stricken, but we certainly were not rich. i'd say maybe middle middle-class. maybe.

anyway, we always ate home-cooked meals cuz it was cheaper. take out or eating out was reserved for special occasions such as birthdays or holidays. we even learned to cook on our own at a young age. fixing things ourselves was understood unless it was an item that required more expertise. clothing was traded among family members and friends, and my mom became an expert at finding sales and used clothing stores. needless to say, much of my clothing growing up was not that cool. thankfully, in high school, fashion was whatever i could make of it by scouring the thrift stores. asking for things required lots and lots of chores or getting an "a" on such-and-such test to get desired thing. many times, it was just "no, you can't have that right now."

well, my point of this whole story is that i want my children to know what "no" means. i've been introduced to the idea that you shouldn't tell your kids "no" too much, but i've never gotten the same reason for why you shouldn't say "no." coming from an upbringing like mine, "no" was normal. it was always heartbreaking, but it was the only option sometimes.

what is the deal? is there a study somewhere that proves that saying "no" harms a child mentally or emotionally? if there is, i want to read it cuz i don't believe it. are parents afraid of saying it, cuz they fear the backlash from the child? um, you're the boss. not the kid. are kids better off in the long run if they do get what they want every time? duh...no!

if you disagree with me, please tell me why i am wrong. i appreciate hearing other people's opinions, and i won't be mean about it. i just have strong opinions about this. if you agree, then holla!

camera advice

hey all you photography buffs. pete and i need to buy a new camera, because we lost ours. or maybe it was stolen. we don't know. we have not had a good year for electronics.

anyway, we want something reasonably-priced but at a good value. i know a lot of you actually have super nice cameras, as you are amazing photographers. but i figure you would know a little about other models too, right? any suggestions for a good point-n-shoot? or should we invest in a better model? what brands are best?

obviously, we want to take pictures of the baby. but we also want to take great shots of travels and whatnot, random candids, and do some night shots and close-ups. i'm not versed in the photo terminology, and you probably have seen how crummy my pics are. so maybe you can tell me what i need to do to take better pics or what camera will help me do so.

green about being green

so with my impending move this upcoming friday, pete and i have decided to consolidate our treasures and keep only the necessities. as some of you have done before, it still gets hard to get down to just the "necessities." you open a giant box of random pens and pencils and whatnot and think "i'll use that. no, really. if i don't use it, then my kids will."

anyway, in this process we had a garage sale. we only made $80, but the money wasn't the reasoning for the sale. again, it was minimizing. making money was just a bonus. we did come across some electronics that don't work and putting them in a free box did nothing to get them out of our hands. *note: garage sale trollers are not suckers. usually. often, they are very rich and very experienced at haggling and getting you to give up things you already had a hard time giving up as it is. free electronics to them translates as "garbage. don't buy me. i will just take up space in your garage."

being a little bit conscious of the environment, i know that i shouldn't just throw my vcr (that has a lost boys vhs stuck in it) into the trash. so, i went on a search...and what did i find?

this.
http://www.mygreenelectronics.com/home.aspx

it's a site that you can put in your zipcode and find a local business that takes old electronics to rebuild, refurbish, reuse, or recycle. i don't know about you, but i think that is kind of cool. so on monday, that is where i am going. it's in the middle of nowhere, but i don't care. i live in the middle of nowhere now, so what's a few extra miles into the sticks.

just one more time and then back to my general health

okay, so i know sarah shares the same gambling problem that i have so i don't have to ask.

the mcdonald's monopoly game ends this upcoming monday, and i am still missing boardwalk or golden ave (the most prized and least available pieces). i have been eating horribly for a little while now. not like 2 mcdonald's meals a day or anything. just 2 a week, which is still bad i think. i even go for the meal that has the most pieces availble--large fries, large drink, ginormous gut-buster sandwich.

so my point is: i know i won't win anything but a stupid mcflurry, but if anyone wants to share pieces with me to win some cash...let me know.

i need: pennsylvania ave., ventnor ave., tennessee ave., vermont ave.

chances are that you all need the same ones. maybe i should just get a large orange drink every day until the game is over...

A Few Thoughts on The Shining And Some Shining Related Business

Well it's been a while since I blogged but I've been pretty busy studying for the GMAT, hanging out with the wife and baby, and now i actually have work to do at work, so I don't have the browsing time that I used to.

Anyway,

A couple weeks ago Amanda and I watched The Shining. If you haven't seen it you should. *WARNING* There is a nude woman in the film, it's rated R, and its pretty damn creepy, but one of the best horror films ever made. I'm pretty sure it's Stanley Kubrik's best film (The director). 2001 A Space Odyssey was rather boring and I could never bring myself to watch A Clockwork Orange. Dr. Strangelove was pretty funny; "There's no fighting in the war room!" Man that line kills me. Full Metal Jacket might compete for best Kubrick film, but I'm going to stick with The Shining.

Kubrik mastered the art of using composed music to highlight scenes and create emotional tension long before P.T. Anderson was around, and The Shining is no exception. From Danny's pre-cognitive visions to the loneliness and desolation of the Overlook Hotel, the music enhances the overwhelming tension from beginning to end.

Kubrik's artistic vision coupled with phenomonal acting job by Jack Nicholson and the other actors created a movie that will go down in history as equal to any Hitchcock film. This leads me to my next point. The film is based on a Stephen King novel. As good as the film is, the novel is better.

Now there are lot of movies where I think the novel is better which makes me dislike the film, and in more rare circumstances a film that I like more than the book which makes me dislike the book more. However, I independently love both the book and the film. If either existed without the other, each can stand on it's own. But since they co-exist, the novel is better but mostly because it gives more insight the demise of Jack Torrence (The main character).

Now for those of you who have seen the film, and not read the book here is a little comparison. In the film you get the feeling that Jack (the character) is kind a prick from the very beginning. He seems a little short, he's only been on the wagon for 8 months, you feel like he could snap at any time, and it seems like he loves his family, but I was never really sure. So watching him sink further and further into himself as the Overlook takes over his psyche, you think...yeah I could see that coming. Bummer, but not too unexpected.

In the book, Jack Torrance is a much more likable character. They have fallen on hard times, he has been on the wagon for about 15 months, and he really does love his family. He is fighting for them and cares deeply for them. You are rooting for they guy. So to watch (I guess read is more appropriate) Jack fall slowly, ever so slowly into the catechism of the monster that is the Overlook is heartbreaking and gut wrenching. Especially when you can see how much Danny loves his father, and those feelings are reciprocated.

That is one of the many differences...

and...


*SPOILER ALERT***SPOILER ALERT**

Hallorann the cook lives in the book.


*SPOLIER DONE**SPOILER DONE*



Next to Shawshank Redemption, I think it might be the best movie adapted from a Stephen King novel. I don't know how many of you are fans of Stephen King, but I think he might be one of the best writers on the planet. I guess he must be fairly popular since you can buy a Stephen King novel almost anywhere and there have been a lot movies made based on his books. Nevertheless, I bet a lot of you dismiss his writing ability out of hand based on his popularity. I did that for a long time. I have a few theories on that.

1. There have been like a million movies based on Stephen King novels, and only a few, and by a few I mean maybe 3, are very good.

Ok. I think I might have been wrong. There are least 4 really good movies based On Stephen King novels.

1. Shawshank Redemption
2. The Shining
3. Stand By Me
4. Misery

Anyway my point is that since the majority of the movies based on his stories are not particularly good, people may think that he is not a good writer. As Dwight from the office might say. FALSE!

2. His popularity. As a society we tend to dismiss things that are popular as only popular because silly, stupid, or pop culture wannabe's like it. In most cases I would agree. (See N SYNC, Paris Hilton, The Hills, etc....etc....anything on MTV...everything except Best Week Ever on VH1).
But Stephen King really is an excellent writer, and one of my favorite author's. I will try to explain why...here it goes.

The Shining is a fantastic novel. The backgrounds of each character are interesting, compelling, and lead you to stand in line to root for them. You care about them and want them to succeed. The story is original. I don't have a good enough vocabulary or imagination to make a better description. If someone is a good writer, they just are. For example I really like Vince Flynn novels. Basically a spy novel that has featured the same character since the beginning. The books are entertaining, but Vince Flynn is not that good of a writer. He would be in the category of wildly popular, but not super talented. Stephen King's fame is deserved.

To further my argument, the character Danny in the novel has a gift called the shinning. Its part pre-cognitive part telepathic. That gift shows up on other characters in Stephen King's novels. In fact, almost all of his novels revolve around his Dark Tower series. The Dark Tower series may be one of the best series ever written. To me it rivals J.R. Tolkien and I think that I like it more than Tolkien s series.

I was sad after I read the last book of the dark tower series. I was fully engrossed in the world Stephen King created and a small part of me wished it were real. Almost every other book King has written shows up in that series is some way or another; A character or a gift, and it all ties together yet each book can stand on its own. If that doesn't prove how capable a writer he is, i don't know what will.

man, i'm a jerk

i just watched the guys that come to pick up recycling sort out all my stuff into the truck...in the freezing rain.

geez, i'm a jerk.

i sort of forgot that i was supposed to be doing that all along...

at least i recycle, right?

already a little person

these pictures are a little weird, but i figured i shouldn't show off how cute my baby is all the time and show her weird-face side.

we started feeding her rice cereal every night, so that she could get used to eating solids and as a supplement (since i don't do night feedings anymore). did i mention she still has not taken a bottle yet? yeah. she is stubborn, and i grew tired of the "fighting." i let her play with a bottle every once in a while, so i hope she will one day think it is fun to drink out of one. if not, it's off to sippy cups we go.



this is her sitting on her own on the couch. not amazing, i know. but i think she looks totally hilarious. she's getting close to doing this on her own without support, but she still keels over. that's funny too. oh man, last night...i found her sleep crawling. how do you capture that on film without waking her up?

just in time for halloween

i remember reading in the pregnancy books that one's hair can change during pregnancy or after. i didn't think it would happen to me, but it did.

my hair is coming in curly. yes, people. curly. BUT...it's not all over my head. there is a very distinctive spot on my head where my hair decides to part that it is coming in curly. AND that is the only spot. the rest of my hair is the same ol' straight asian hair. **note: i've always wanted curly hair, because that's what you do. you always want what you can't have naturally. but i never signed up for this.

is it awesome? right now, no. the hair looks like a bad 80s crimp job or crazy halloween witch hair (hence the title of this post).

and, no. i don't want to show you yet. i just bought a cheap flat iron to see what i can do about this. in the meantime, i will conjure up the courage to take a picture of it and show you my hair tragedy.

guess who has 2 thumbs and sleeps in her crib now?

this girl!

these are so addicting

recently, i decided to try out watching veronica mars. i'd heard good things from a couple of people (yes, only girls), and i had time to kill while i nursed izzy. what else am i going to do when i can't move or use my hands?

anyway, this series rocks. pete was skeptical, but he ended up liking it too. it's funny and interesting, and the characters are all really cool. especially kristin bell (veronica mars) who btw is on heroes now. there's a lot of hilarious quips and references to pop culture stuff--like battlestar galactica and the big lebowski, to name the more popular quoted things on the show. i even saw a girl i knew from my freshman dorm days at byu in one of the episodes.

so if you are lost for a new series to watch in your netflix queue, check it out. you won't be let down.



i've brought up this guy before too, but i was just noticing the other day that there is a giant life-size domo hanging by the front doors of all the targets. remembering my merchandising days at borders, i recalled that we usually threw away all marketing materials. or if they were cool enough, we took them home ourselves or gave them away. anyway, i want one, and i asked the guest services girl. she was very informed, mind you. she told me that they do not sell, give away, or throw away old marketing materials. they send them back to the company that they purchased them from. bugger! i think i am going to have to call in a favor to someone from church that works at target.

teaching english abroad

so pete is applying to mba school soon, but he and i are feeling the travel bug too. we're interested in teaching english abroad, but we're undecided on where we want to go. we have to make enough money to survive there with a baby, plus be able to pay for stuff here still (house stuff). does anyone have any good connections abroad?

*i'd really like to go to japan to rekindle my language skills, but we are open to anything. let us know.

sleep training

so after a couple of months of endless crying and zombie-like crankyheads, pete and i ended putting izzy in our bed at night to sleep. it was something i told myself and other people (to my shameful dismay) that i would never do, but it became a survivalist method. we just couldn't get her to sleep anywhere but next to me.

anyway, she is now 5 months old and getting closer to a safe age where she can go through the night without a night feeding. i want to try some sleep training with her, so we all can get regular sleep in our own beds. although i love having her next to me, i miss cuddling with pete and i sometimes feel like i can never get deep sleep.

a bunch of parents from church recommended "healthy sleep habits, happy child." they all say it was a lifesaver for them. what i've read so far intrigues me, and i think i will attempt it within this next month. izzy does take a midmorning nap every day that lasts at least 1 hour. once in a blue moon, she takes a second nap. these naps always are in her swing, unfortunately, because she got used to the swinging motion i guess. i will have to break her of that too.

i do have some questions for any bloggers out there who have used dr. weissbluth's methods.

*how long did it take to get your kid to sleep thru the night? or what age were they when they slept thru the night? (i know all kids are different. i'm just curious.)

*did your kid have some mobile capabilities when you tried the sleep training? izzy can roll from her back to her stomach now, so i worry about the whole leaving her be thru the night thing. i'm trying to hash it over in my head how i will keep her from doing this in her rage from not being able to sleep next to me at night.

alright. i am out.

best invention ever

for a long time, our cat afi (yes, like the band. it's a really terrible joke that went on too long.) has shed monster globs of hair all over our house(s). each day would seem like a cancer cat was moping around and dropping precious bits of herself for us to remember her by.

but...i bought a genius tool this past week! FURMINATOR! that's what it's called, and it's amazing. someone recommended it to me when i told them i didn't want to pay someone to shave her all the time or comb her out. it costs $60 every couple of months. highway robbery, y' know?!

we got our furminator in the mail, and it combs the living daylights out of that cat. oh man, does she love it too.

so if you have a mini ewok/owl cat/dog walking around your place making it look like you just laid down animal carpet, get the furminator. it's worth it. hasta la vista, kit-ty cat!

the little sapling

just some pics we wanted to share.



doesn't izzy look so ethereal? i might as well call her gandalf.



it's getting a little bit easier to capture smiles on camera. just a little bit.



her happy faces always give me happy faces.

target is so awesome

if you haven't been to target lately, you must live in a cave or something. or you could just be a boy/man who doesn't like shopping.

anyway, target has domo-kun as their marketing dude for halloween. if you're a little bit cool, you know who he is. if you don't, then go to target! by golly, what are you waiting for?! he's so stinkin' scary-cute, i just love it!



the above domo-kun is $7.99, in stores only. aren't you jealous i live in target country where there is a target on every corner..?

GMAT Questions

Is there anyone else out there studying for the GMAT or is smart enough to know how to solve these problems? I was studying an old GMAT test and I have no idea how they got the answers to these problems. If anyone knows, please comment with an explanation, or email me with an explanation. It's like when you see a movie and you kind of recognize an actor, and unless you know who it is it gets under your skin...that's like not knowing how to solve these...its really buggin me.

Please Help

Pete - petefaleschini@gmail.com

P.S. I'm sure when someone points out the how and why i will feel pretty dumb for not knowing, but whatever...

Table Cloth Skirt and Dinner Party Top GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

i want this for izzy. i would have to keep it in the closet for a little while, but it would be such a cute addition to izzy's wardrobe collection.

Table Cloth Skirt and Dinner Party Top GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

isadora bea 4 month stats

i should have posted that the stats i gave last time were supposed to be her 2 month ones, but whatever. it was midway between 2 and 3 months.

here is what she is at now:

weight: 12 lbs, 11.5 oz.

height/length: 25 inches

head: 39.8 in circumference

i was worried she was tiny or too light, but the doc says she is fine. apparently, she will be on the tall/thin side. take that asian genes!

she laughs way more now, but she needs daddy around to make her laugh or some tummy tickling. smiling at others is new, but women with husky voices don't do it for her. tummy time is doing well, and rolling is getting better. her neck is strong as ever. she tries to grab everything now and likes to put them in her mouth. we had to keep her away from the goats at the state fair. she is sleeping great, but she will have an off-night here or there. finally, she loves to talk now. a bunch. it's as if she is saying "anarchists at the rnc are so silly sometimes. don't they know pushing trash cans over won't stop the war."

and here is a recent pic of my girl:

note: aim for a diaper that fits

g-ma faleschini told me a story yesterday about this lil' guy:




apparently, he had woken up early and thrown open the doors to her bedroom. she was still in bed and her knickers, so she had to jump out of bed to go chase him. he was pointing around her room, speaking in babble, totally diaperless.

why did he have no diapers, you ask? i guess saleit had bought the next size up in diapers, and they don't fit as snug. since he didn't have pj bottoms on, he decided the diapers were too much of a hassle. anyway, g-ma picked him up and went out her bedroom door, and guess what she found? yup. you guessed it. the motherload, if you will.

thank goodness grandmas are so patient, cuz i would be freaking out.

although, if it was izzy, i probably would have thought it was a little funny. **i did find poop splattered on her nursery wall the other day. it was dried up, so i figure it had been there a while. how i missed it is beyond me. i laughed while i cleaned it up.

food allergy?

hey mommy friends. i have a question about food allergies. it seems there are a lot more kids these days with food allergies, and i want to know more about it. i want to be able to spot it in my child, in case she might have it.

is there anything you noticed happening with your child that led you to believe he/she had a food allergy? colicky? sleepless nights? skin problems? more stomach issues than normal? weird poo issues?

did you have to go to a doctor to figure out what it was? how long before you figured it out?

how well do your kids grow after having to change their diets (and possibly yours)?

*i don't really know if izzy has a food allergy or not. i'm mostly just curious. she has some of the same skin problems as me. i've always been super sensitive to perfume, dyes, heat, and certain natural allergens. but it was brought to my attention recently that i might have a food allergy that causes my skin problems too, which could also be izzy's issue. who knows though? i've had skin problems all my life, and i've never eaten the same thing every day that i have had a rash or other skin problem. so...this would be really hard to tell.

after church, we were bad. but...all for the sake of nihon

this past sunday, st. paul (one of the twins), hosted a japanese lantern lighting festival. it was only for one day, and i really wanted to go. so pete let us, and we even had some family and a friend join us.

this is pete and i. look how fat we are now. i bet you didn't recognize us. i've finally shed my baby weight except for 1 pound. now i need to work on my lazy-wendy's weight.


this is lahave being "gentle" with izzy. he's our nephew, and he's super cute and love him tons. but...he is sort of jealous of izzy sometimes and has hit her in the face a couple of times. *mojo, this is who asher used to look like. they don't really anymore.


gavin, bree (pete's sis), and saleit. saleit is from israel. did you know that there is some weird theory that japan is one of the settlements of the lost tribes of israel? saleit would probably laugh at that one. she was ready to go at one point, i think.


this is right before we left. even though izzy is crying, i love this picture. i'm sort of the type of mom that laughs at their kid when they're crying for no reason. this was izzy's pre-bedtime meltdown. don't worry. i'm not a jerk.


all in all, the festival was okay. not really that great, but it was nice to hang out and people watch. we saw lots of japan-o-philes, a.k.a. manga nerds. and we even saw this:



...except it was on a bunch of white girls. i think this style is totally strange, but it's actually more charming on a japanese girl. on a white girl, it looks way stupid. sorry. and i just found out that they call this style "lolita." gross.

back to cool

i wish izzy was going to school, so i could get her this:

dairy-free bubble tea

okay all. i attempted a recipe for bubble tea smoothie without any dairy. i guess you could call it more a bubble smoothie. i have a slight lactose intolerance and avoid dairy here and there, but i know some of you also have allergies or children with allergies. so here goes (sorry, no pictures):

*this recipe yields about 4 16 oz. smoothies, i believe. my cups aren't clear, and i'm sort of guessing on the general size here.

1/2 can of pineapple juice concentrate
3-4 cups of fresh mango or frozen
1 cup ice
1/2 to 1 cup water

blend until smooth. pour into cup already filled with your tapioca pearls and enjoy bubbly goodness.

my concoction was fairly sweet, so i would recommend using less juice concentrate or putting in more water to dilute. white grape, apple or whatever juice concentrate you would like to use should work great. it's pretty much the same idea as the syrups you can buy at the asian market. cheaper, though.

you can use any sort of fruit too. it's your idea of what a delicious smoothie/slushee should be, but with pearls!

also, there are different sorts of tapioca pearls (different colors even) you can get at the asian market. you can get ones that are ready in 5 minutes, or you can do the old-fashioned way and wait an hour or so. it's pretty easy to make them up, and all packages you buy should have instructions in english on it. hopefully.

enjoy! oh, i'd love to see pics of you or your family enjoying your bubble tea concoctions. i will try and get one up of us. we're even thinking of having a bubble tea party with some friends! wanna come?

izzy happenings

just a quick baby update, because i know all of you have been aching to know (and see) what's up with this young lass.

here she is. already an exhibitionist. what is it with little girls and pulling up their dresses?


no. i didn't cut her hair. she has obtained her own bald spot on the back of her head from rubbing her head on the mattress when she sleeps. i just hope it doesn't look like that forever. i hear extensions are expensive.


we call this "the stallone." i've been having a hard time capturing a smile on camera. she sees the camera and sort of goes blank. it's as if she is too cool to smile or something.


this girl loves to stand and walk. if you try to sit or lay her down after doing some walking, she gets a bit whiny. i think i am in for some trouble in the future.

united noodle, i love you

i went on an expedition for straws and syrups for bubble tea (a.k.a. boba). i've only been to a few asian markets in the twin cities, and there are a lot. my all-time favorite is united noodle company in the downtown area, because they are ginormous and have everything for japanese, thai, korean, chinese, and filipino cuisine. they even had frozen siaopao (sp?), which is the filipino version of a meat-filled dumpling. no offense to the chinese, but the pinoys do it better.

anyway, i found my straws. i didn't get the powder or any syrup, because i want to do it fruit smoothie style sans dairy. i'm so excited, i just can't hide it...!

here are a couple sites that have recipes on them:

www.bubbleteasupply.com
www.bubbleteastore.com

i'll post later how my concoctions come out.

bubble tea recipes?

does anyone else like bubble tea? pete and i got some the other day, and i have been craving one every day since. i got a mango pineapple one, but there was no milk in it. i guess some are made with milk, but mine wasn't. i figure i could recreate it, but has anyone else made bubble tea before and have a great recipe to share?

*we can't go to uptown to get this delicious drink, because izzy doesn't like the sound of blenders and the smell of dirty hippies.

bad choice, mom

last night, izzy and i were settling in for the night. we try to get to bed around 10 o'clock every night to avoid her getting cranky. anyway, she was nursing and all of a sudden broke out into a mad fit of crying. she had been nursing for the past half hour and was fine up until then. it was frightening and sad and ear-piercing.

i tried patting her back, thinking it was a burp. nothing. i rocked her a little bit, thinking she may just be tired and upset. nope. so, i decided to go check her diaper and rock her in the glider. i checked her temperature, but there was no sign of a fever. umm...yeah. i ended up with a shoulder full of throw-up.

apparently, what i had eaten that night did not agree with my poor baby and it needed to come out. she cried and cried for a while. she did have a dirty diaper too, so we had to change that on top of barf clothes. poor thing was screaming bloody murder the whole time too. i felt so bad.

the only thing that consoled the poor babe was daddy rocking her, while she was wrapped in her blanket. she shuddered and sniffed for a half hour or so before dozing off.

note to self: never eat poor man's meat from a can, if you're nursing.

face.

what she looks like up close and personal. she is starting to smile at more people. not just mommy.



i wish this wasn't so blurry. auntie bree was playing with her and sticking her tongue out at izzy, and she's been imitating it. now, it seems like she can't stop.



what she would look like if she were flying at you (sans mommy holding her).


they go to the same stylist.

name game

i just read a post from another friend's blog about picking baby names. i was curious to see what their friends were advising them to name their next baby girl. no offense to their friends, but what in the world?!

dakoda? where's the "t"?
braelyn? i don't know what that stems from, but it sort of makes me gag.
sequoya? i'm not sure where they went to school, but that is not how you spell sequoia. and i thought that was a name of a tree and a native american tribe...not a baby.

anyway, i think i am sort of being a brat about this. but, whatever. i know my baby's name is not common, but at least she won't have a hard time telling people how her name "should" be spelled. well...the first name at least.

**oh, i forgot to mention this part too. what is up with those jerk face parents who named their kid "talula does the hula from hawaii?" for real. that was the kid's name. thankfully, a judge had the decency to claim the child a ward of the state or whatever until the parents changed the kid's name to something less retarded.

***oh yeah. one more thing. quit naming kids after lord of the rings characters. it's not cute. it's creepy. you are only giving your kid an excuse to be weird and pasty and only reading manga in a corner of the lunchroom while other kids throw french fries in their hair.

wrong number

so the past couple of nights, i have had someone calling my phone at 3 am. i don't know what for and who is calling, but i decided that i would call to find out who it could be. to my dismay, the person who owns the number did not answer. but...to my delight, this is what the person's answering machine said:

thank you for calling pimp. unfortunately, right now we need to find out if this is about some money. so check in your pockets. see if you got some money. because pimp is going to pick up. now this ain't about us paying you some money. this about you owing some money. so if this is a bill collector, we're going to pay you on the third. just put it on your calendar, the third of never-uary. got that. the third of never-uary. okay. here he come now.

or...something to that effect. i'm sure it is a recording from something, and i love it. i only wish i knew what this person could be calling me about at 3 am?

isadora bea 3 month stats

22.5 inches long, 10 lbs 14 oz, head...normal?

healthy eater, co-sleeper at night/swing sleeper by day, semi-bobble head, strong neck, cooing, razzing, "talking", smiling, sitting up, and she loves to suck on her fists

we're working on her arm muscles these days, because i put tummy time on hold because of her reflux issues.

the bottle war still rages on. i've decided to stick with one nipple and work with her on that. i think she needs something constant in this "fight."

i think i might be winning the sleep battle though. she is getting used to just laying down in her crib or bassinet for a few minutes without crying. i'm getting better at picking out the tired cries and the mad ones, but she is getting smarter too. hopefully soon, i can get her to take longer naps outside of the swing and sleep at night in her own bed. (she'll usually sleep in that thing for hours if i let her.)

overall, she is a joy. i never thought i could love someone so much, especially a baby. i admit, i didn't really care for babies all that much before. but...look at her! she's addicting.

she loves sitting up so much that she will sometimes cry if you try to lay her down.


she gets mesmerized by the camera and forgets to smile.


hanging with a friend.

arranged marriage?

i know this is still practiced in parts of the middle east and south asia, but we've decided to (jokingly) practice it here. some good friends of ours, the shermans, had a baby boy one week after izzy. they were supposed to be born on the same day, but izzy beat gabe to the punch. she's a week older. since they're so close in age and will probably hang out with each other as long as we (the parents of said children) live nearby, we figured why not. it's cute and makes for great photos that will totally embarass them when they get older. muhaha!

here are some pictures of the young couple at church. izzy is pretty flirtatious for her age. i'm going to have to keep an eye on her.



this is a pretty flattering picture pete took of me with izzy when she was being a fussy butt. (pete hasn't figured out that you don't take pictures of people when they're talking...)



a super dark and blurry picture of the little one in mid-fuss. i don't know why, but i still think she is cute when she cries. especially when she does the pouty face.



daddy being silly. he has the magic rock these days.




p.s. look at how "white" my baby is! i was hoping we could mix some caramel into that baby, but i guess she is mostly vanilla.

bad dreams and inspiration

the other night i had a pretty bad nightmare. it was one of those where you wake up crying with actual tears and stuff. in the dream, it was pete, izzy and i sleeping in our bed. but it wasn't our bed. it was my parents' bed in one of the old houses i grew up in.

anyway, there was an evil spirit (like a demon) looming over us. but i was the only one who was awake and could sense it at the time. i was trying to get up to wake up pete and izzy, but the evil spirit was pushing down on my chest. so then i tried to scream to wake pete up, but nothing came out of my mouth. the evil spirit had covered or shrouded my voice. but then izzy stirred, and the evil spirit went over to her i guess. i was able to scream and wake pete up, and he told me to be quiet. the baby was asleep. and i tried to explain to him the danger we were in. and then he saw and realized what was going on.

izzy was crying and awake now, because the spirit was now looming over her. pete and i got up and grabbed izzy and began to pray. as we prayed, we could feel the evil spirit leaving the room and all was better.

i know that sounds super corny, but i thought that dream was inspirational. i'm not the best at saying my prayers daily, but when i do i always feel good afterward. i surprised myself that i thought, in my dream, to actually kneel down to pray. i'm definitely grateful that i can always turn to prayer to help guide me and my family and bring us comfort in our time of need. i've learned and grown so much in using the power of prayer.

so...take that evil spirits!

how soon we forget

the garbage pail kids movie was on one of the movie channels the other day, so i recorded it. i thought it would be nostalgic to watch it again.

i was wrong. creepy. creepy. schmeepy.

i got thru 5 minutes, and i couldn't do it anymore.

little monsters was on too, so i recorded that as well. this one actually brought back good memories. i love fred savage. or at least, i did when i was younger.

all i want to know is when they will finally put the wonder years together into a boxed set.

happy birthday, friend.

because my package for you and your baby won't get to you on time, i send you an interweb shout out on your special day.




thanks for being a great friend. i miss you tons and wish you the best on your impending arrival.

my summer palette

watermelon.
popsicles.
almost anything on the bbq.
grilled corn on the cob.
potato salad.
mcdonald's vanilla cones. that's right. i support mickey d's. for $1.26, i become one of the billion served.

i could eat all of these every day, all day long. looks like my muffin top is going to have to wait.

guess who didn't get to see fireworks last night?

pete, izzy and i. that's right. we even drove 30 or so minutes to a prime location to see them, and we didn't see any. well...maybe a warning one.

i guess that's what happens when you can't get an infant to take her second nap of the day (her nap schedule, not mine) and expect her to be miss happy and not a miss crankypants. the next hour or so after we left the spot was filled with ear-piercing crying until she tired herself out and went down for the count. i wish i would have gotten a picture of her sprawled out exhausted from her day, but my nerves were already shot and worn by then. i soon joined my child for a night of z's.

whatever. it was all worth it. even just to get these pictures from the bbq/swim party we went to at our friend's house:





ignore me in the last photo. that is definitely not the cute part.

oh, before i forget. thanks again, katy and bella, for letting izzy borrow your swimsuit and hat! even though izzy didn't like the water that much...

A Few Movie Suggestions

This is a totally random list of suggestions about some movies I have seen lately.

First off:

Caddyshack. This movie is overrated. I mean its funny, but not that funny. On my list of the funniest movies ever, I don't know if it would crack the top 100. And as far as golf movies go, Happy Gilmore is much funnier.

Master & Commander Far Side of the World. This a great movie. The first time I saw it I wasn't sure what to think when I left the theater. But the more I thought about it, the more I liked it. On the second viewing, I liked it even more.

A Prairie Home Companion. I loved this movie, however I could see other people not enjoying the film so much. I guess I have a few things going in my favor. I live in Minnesota, I love listening to the radio show, and I enjoy a lot of the director Robert Altman's other films. So anyway, those are some suggestions. You can take em or leave em, dontcha know...

The World Cup and the WWE at Work

Hello All. I don't know if it's still called the WWF. I have not watched wrestling since I was in 6th grade, and I didn't even really watch it then. Anyway, my point is that running around pulling moves like a powerdriver, candylicious, the asiatic spike, and headbutts are all well and good if you are in the ring, but should not be implemented at work or in professional soccer.

Ok. OK. Nobody pulled out the Samoan Drive, but one of my co-workers did get headbutted last week. One of the IT guys was in the accounting office and said hello to one of the accountants. For all his trouble he got a headbutt in the face. That's right. A headbutt in the face for saying hello. That accountant was told to pack up his S%$& and was escorted out of the building (It was the second time in two weeks that he had done this).

The next hour after the incident was just as bad as ESPN covering some stupid story relentlessly till everyone gets tired of hearing about it. An analysis and breakdown from every angle till you want to tear you hair out (AKA this last Superbowl. I just wanted the freaking game to be done so I didn't have to hear about it anymore. I didn't even care who won, I just didn't want to hear about it). Well the analysis of the headbutting incident was not that bad and even a week later telling someone they better get something done or they will get headbutted still brings a smile to our faces.

my thin skin

i understand most moms are proud of their kid's reaching milestones or surpassing them even, but is it really necessary to tell me how "far behind" my child is? do i care that your child reached such-n-such milestone 2 months before my kid?

my answer? no. i don't care. good for you or whatever.

but, be a little considerate. show some humility. you're breaking the unspoken rule about how rude it is to brag and tell people how supposedly-awesome your kid is over theirs. oh? you've never heard that? well, learn it. otherwise, my big mouth is going to have a hard time keeping shut.

mo sukoshi izzy

here are some more shots of the babe:



since most babies look like winston churchill, i figured i would make izzy a mini winston for the day. or the minute, rather.



here she is taking a nap on a rather hairy, but handsome man. she's not a chubby baby, but she is getting longer. i hope she is taller than my namesake.




this last one is in an outfit my mother-in-law (g-ma, but i really like gammy) gave us. it was supposed to be for pete's sister who is now 22, but i guess she never got the chance to wear it. it's so 80s, i love it. still a bit big, but she may be able to fill it out by the end of the summer.

baby model

izzy really likes to have one hand up by her head. usually behind her head. almost like she is posing for a picture. she is really touching her hair when she does that. i know all you bald babies out there are jealous. don't hate.

but just look at her. doesn't that face make you melt?

the smiles are coming more and more now. i can't wait for the laughter. btw, 2 things she loves to smile at that crack me up. the cactus and a light fixture on the ceiling that looks like a boob. sooooo funny.