Food and Life and Summertime

Isn't it interesting how food can evoke such vivid memories? The taste, the color, the smell, the texture; it all brings us back to particular places and specific times in our lives. For me, summertime ushers in especially intense memories as seasonal fruits and vegetables take me back to my childhood growing up in the green, green forests of the East Coast, surrounded by my Mom's gardens and enjoying homegrown fruits and vegetables every day.



It's something as simple as the smell of rosemary that reminds me of the red skinned potato salad we would get from the small grocer down the street from our house, or corn on the cob that remind me of my Mom and Dad, sitting on the steps shucking corn- the silky fibers and rough, snappy green husks going everywhere. It's the snap of the green beans into the colander, the smell of red, ripe tomatoes on the vine, or even Ball Park franks, Heinz ketchup and Gulden's spicy mustard that remind me of nightly barbeques in our backyard.

Summer is a lot of things, but to me it's always that first trip up to Carvel, gelatis from Rita's, or the ice cream truck at the park. It's the way orange and cream anything instantly transports me to the boardwalk, seagulls squawking and swooping in the distance, the ocean sounds mixing with laughing children, the smell of sunscreen and salt hanging in the air, all while enjoying a special treat- an orange and cream ice cream cone from Kohr's. The beach will always remind me of Gouda cheese and crackers, peanut butter and jelly on wheat bread, and how amazing crisp green grapes can taste under a big umbrella, on a brightly-colored towel. Summertime is slurpees from 7-11, sub sandwiches from Wawa, and berries. Always berries, every summer, and the first ripe raspberries of the season will always evoke memories of eating them by the handful out of my parents' refrigerator.





And so I think a lot about what we feed Henry and the experiences we give him through food. I look forward to having our own big garden he can help me plant and maintain. I am excited to shuck corn with him, pick our own berries from the bush in our backyard, and to enjoy experiences from the things we prepare and eat every single day, be it making homemade pizza in the kitchen, barbequing tofu kebabs out back, or taking a family trip up to Dairy Queen when the temperatures start to rise. Being a parent is great for a million reasons, but one of my favorites in the ability to make your child's environment as beautiful and magical as possible, in so many different ways. For me, summertime has always been a time full of adventure and enjoyment, filled with sweet treats and healthy, whole foods. And so I look forward to giving our boy as many of those ice cream-cone and fresh fruit-filled summers as I can, making memories from the simple, everyday things that somehow turn special in the shine of the summer sun.

Normal, Everyday Kind of Days

Lately we've been having a whole lot of normal, everyday kind of days. Nothing really special, or out of the ordinary. No big trips or fancy lunch dates. Just Henry and me, hanging out, doing our thing.

Most mornings Henry wakes up at 6:30am, but both his Dad and I have learned that he prefers to lounge about in bed, rolling around in his blanket, and slowly wake up on his own. And finally, at around 7am, he'll usually stand up and announce to the world he's ready to join it. This morning I swear he yelled out, "Alright, I'm up!" his big, toothy good morning-grin evident even in the small monitor's screen.

And so I go in, turn off the noise machine, turn off the camera, and tuck his ever-rotating stuffed animals under the covers in the corner of the crib (we'll see them at naptime, Henry!). I get my big-little baby changed, and then we head out to the kitchen where his cup of milk is waiting for him. Henry drinks in his chair while watching PBS, and while I make him breakfast. His typical first meal is either a waffle or piece of Ezekial toast with almond butter. Sometimes he'll have a slice of quiche or a bowl of oatmeal but he always has fresh fruit- raspberries, strawberries, and bananas, or whatever we have on hand.

He'll sit in his chair and eat slowly while he watches Sesame Street, his blonde bedhead bobbing up and down as he belly laughs along with his favorite characters. After we both eat the television goes off and we do a whole lot of playing. Sometimes we'll go on a walk, sometimes we'll run around in the yard, sometimes we'll curl up in the front room on the brown couch and read for a good hour. He  always likes to always be doing an activity, getting into something, or perfecting his newest hobby, climbing onto things he shouldn't.

During these kinds of days when we stay home, the rest of the day goes by in a whirlwind- naptime, lunchtime, snacktime, naptime again. Then Hank gets home and it's dinnertime-bathtime-storytime-bedtime. And at the end of our everyday-day when Henry is tucked into bed, and Hank and I are relaxing on the couch, I often find myself feeling so grateful for all of the little moments I've gotten to experience over the past ten or so hours. The simple things that made me smile- our routines, the way it feels to work on something everyday with Henry and then finally see him "get it" (like today, with the colors and shapes)...the "mmm" sound he makes when he really likes his lunch, or the way his face lights up when he figures out a puzzle piece that's been frustrating him. It's just neat. And even though we do manage to have lots and lots of special trips and fun outings, I think my most favorite days are these quiet, slower ones at home.

I feel lucky I have this little person in my life to remind me to stop and notice these things. This morning I was putting dishes away when I looked over and saw Henry staring intently out of the window at two red and black birds perched on the back fence. He was transfixed, his eyes wide as they flew away. Sometimes in blogging I feel like it's easy to feel like there isn't much to say if you aren't out doing seemingly amazing things, but sometimes the most interesting and beautiful things happen right at home, and the beauty in your everyday world is the most special thing there is. Because really, I think these are the days I'll always cherish the most, and the ones I will always want to remember- the normal, everyday kind of days. 

Grateful.

You know what I'm especially grateful for this week? The sound of Henry's laughter and way his nose scrunches up just so with that extra-wide grin, hot yoga and everything it's bringing to my life, getting back to feeling one hundred percent me after a couple months of feeling one hundred percent the opposite, Ezekial cinnamon raisin toast and butter, the monthly inspiration I find in Whole Living magazine, beautiful blogs like this one and this one, thoughts of second babies swirling around in my head and the sweet the daydreams that always follow, lots of outdoor time and the way spring always makes everything feel so new, big, ripe, juicy raspberries, Hank and everything he does for us, and for English muffin pizzas (because I could eat them everyday and never, ever get sick of them).

How about you?

An Afternoon with Friends

Today a few of my girlfriends and their little ones made the drive up from Phoenix to come hang out with Henry and me. We had big plans: a pizza lunch at Bill's, running around the square, and hopes of ending our afternoon with cupcakes. We somehow managed to accomplish everything on our to-do list and also fit in a stop for some coconut iced tea (my favorite).

The kids range in age which is a lot of fun- Henry is the youngest at 18 months, Layla the blondie is 21 months, curly-headed Lola Birdie is 2 1/2 and then handsome Dillon is 3 1/2! They're all so cute together but Lola and Dillon are especially darling and hold hands everywhere they go.

Today's weather was absolutely perfect- it was sunny and a bit breezy, around 70 degrees. I couldn't think of a better day to have my hot-weather Phoenician friends come up and escape their rising temperatures! I always wish all of my girlfriends lived in one place, but for now I'll settle for frequent visits like today's- we had such a great time.

Here are some photos from our afternoon -

Our Weekend

This weekend was great (minus the wisdom teeth stuff I'll get to later). I always feel like our weekend starts on Thursday for some reason too, so I'll share a bit about that day as well. I started my morning bright and early at the 6am hot yoga class (best way to start the day!). Later on Henry and I had another one of those afternoons where we ended up downtown, strolling around the square, me sipping on tea, and just enjoying the fresh air. We stopped for close to 30 minutes to watch some big trucks working on something at the courthouse- Henry was so into them! It was really cute to see him get so excited whenever they would pick up a big load and dump it on the other side of the construction. BOYS, right!?

Friday Adie, Henry and I spent the day hiking, and then I enjoyed a low-key "me" night while Hank went out with the guys for coffee and pool. Saturday morning I woke up and headed to a 90 minute hot yoga class (I can't get enough), then came home and hung out with Hank and Henry for a bit. Later on I had a hair appointment and got my nails done too. It all sounds so indulgent but it was SUCH a treat and it was one of the best, most relaxing days I've had in awhile.

Then later Sarah came up for the night. We were way overdue for some quality time, and it made me so happy to finally be able to catch up, hear about her honeymoon, and really just spend hours doing a whole lot of nothing more than talking on the couch. She got up here earlier in the evening and Hank, Henry, Sarah and I headed downtown for some Bill's Pizza, which was of course delicious. I've said it once (or ten million times) and I'll say it again: their Bill's sauce- half pesto/half tomato- is one of my favorite things in the entire world. I'm such a Bill's Sauce pusher too. "You love pizza right? Do you like pesto? Okay well you HAVE to try this sauce..." Every time. After dinner she and I walked around downtown for awhile before coming home and staying up way, way too late giggling and talking into the night. This morning we woke up and got smoothies, then Sar hit the road and we headed over to our friends' kiddos' 1st birthday party! It was another beautiful day and Henry had the best time playing soccer in the grass and hanging out with his buddy Marilyn. The birthday boy got to enjoy some delicious cake and open a ton of presents as we all clapped and cheered. Pretty awesome. All is all, it's been a great past few days.

But you know what's not so great? The pain and swelling that has come back to my mouth. I'm not sure what's going on but I have to call the oral surgeon tomorrow. From my googling I think I may have some sort of infection going on so I am looking forward to seeing what he says. Half of my lip is still numb too. Total nightmare. I hate you, wisdom teeth. Or my lack of, I guess.

To end on a positive note though, here are some photos from the weekend. 

 
Henry giving his thirsty dino some of his water // our beautiful state flags // construction on the square // baked blueberry oatmeal for breakfast // getting my hair colored (finally) // the guest bed all ready for Sarah // pizza and love // Henry and his Auntie Suki // BFF //

H & S, one of my favorite photos // playing soccer // the "we love to look unamused at birthday parties" club // wild boy with wild hair // tired little babe // the cutest, happiest one-year-old I know!

a Friday hike

Friday's weather was perfect- sunny, warm, and Adie and I had a whole afternoon to kill, so we headed up the mountain on a little hike. I decided to take Henry in the stroller this time and it was pretty difficult to maneuver (about halfway up Adie and were rethinking this bright decision), so I don't think we'll try it that way again. But regardless it was the most beautiful day and I was happy to spend it with my sweet friend, girl-talking while surrounded by such beauty. I probably say it once a day but I LOVE where we live. To me, it's perfect, and days like Friday only remind me of this. I am looking forward to a summer filled with adventures and lots of time spent exploring our beautiful Arizona scenery.

Here are a few pictures from our afternoon-