T I N Y • D A N C E R

This was the first day we got the key to Jeff's gallery space on Marsh Street. 

It was about 8 times the size of the old one, and Evelyn took the opportunity 

to dance all over the big empty space.  Evelyn has always been our tiny dancer.

What's what in Elliott-ville...

  

As we round the corner on Elliott's 21'st month in the world, I'm reminded every day of the impending t-word.  T, as in T W O.  And it's like he knows how close it is- and is behaving accordingly.  This Elliott of ours... phew!  He is a force.  Here's what's what in Elliott-ville lately...

Diapers?  No.  Just... no.  He's so over those things.  Unfortunately, his body didn't get the no-diaper memo that his mind sent out.  So in the meantime, diaper changes involve wrestling, distracting, impressive speed, and at least 4 hands.

Naps?  Ditto.  If anti-nap tantrums were an olympic sport- you'd be looking at the platinum medal CHAMPION OF THE UNIVERSE, RIGHT HERE!  I have never seen a child so willfully determined to not be put down for a nap.  I mean, if I could hear my own thoughts over the piercing screams... I'd probably be impressed with the determination.

Food?  We're good here, thank Jesus.  He's been a voracious eater since day 1, and happily the appetite is still going strong.  Of course he'd PREFER that every meal be served with a side of ketchup, and a carrot-apple crusher, but he'll take it either way.  That I can get this child to feast on yogurt, leeks, arugula, avocados, and every meat and veggie known to man makes me a very happy mama.  10 points for Elliott!

NO.  He hears this a lot, and every single time- it's like the very first time.  The hands come up over his eyes, the knees buckle, and *SPLAT* he's face-down on the ground.  Now... cue wailing.  Aaaaand scene.  Maybe not Oscar quality, but at least Golden Globe worthy.

Baths?  Like James and Evelyn before him, Elliott is a water baby through and through.  Anything that has gone wrong in this boy's life can be cured with warm water and a few bubbles.  On a particularly difficult afternoon (*ahem* I'm looking at you, Monday) he spent a good 2.5 hours in his cupcake tub.  I'm convinced that he would have stayed in it overnight if I hadn't pulled the YOURLIPSARETOTALLYPURPLEGETOUT mom card.  

His favorite words?  "Hi" and "happy".  *mellllllllt* 

And there it is... just when I think I'm about to lose my mind, he touches my cheek, looks me right in the eyes, smiles, and says: "Hiiiii!" like he hasn't seen me in YEARS.  He bounces down to the floor, gathers his mess of Hot Wheels, Duplos, and plastic picnic food- chanting "Happy" "Happy" Happy".  And how could we not be?  

So here's me, checking in from month no. 21, dreading month no. 24, and trying hard to appreciate every moment (good and bad) along the way.  

  

Elliott Immortalized As Public Art...

Our little monster has been immortalized on San Luis Obispo property (legally) 

by Stenzskull as part of the city’s “Box Art Project”.

I sent Stenzskull the above three photos as source material. His idea for his box was portraits of people confined within the parameters of the box. A baby seemed fitting. Especially ours since he has an obsession with crawling in boxes. He’ll even remove drawers from the dresser, drop them on the ground and then sit in it. Yeah, he’s a weirdo.

The finished product is so awesome! I’m tempted to say “epic”, which has become quite overused among the cool kids lately, so I’ll resist the temptation. Coral and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. I mean, our son is painted on a freaking electrical box! It’s pretty sweet, if you ask me.

A huge thanks and shout out to our good friend and fellow artist, Stenzskull, for his amazing work. Thanks, homie!

If you want to see this in person the box is on the corner of Santa Rosa and Mill St in San Luis Obispo, CA.

Thanks for looking!

- Jeff

Happy Halloween!

Hi friends!  Did you make it out to see the Munchkin March at 

Farmers Market last night?  I had all kinds of big plans for these three.  

But one by one the plans got dashed with tears, miscommunications, 

costumes that were "itchy and hot", wrestling practice, and smeared make-up.  

Alas, life went on unplanned.  I did, however, get a chance to take some fun 

costume portraits of the kiddos downtown by the creek.  I was really hoping 

to get our photographer friend Richard down here to do the pictures, but we 

couldn't work it out.  But I'm pretty pleased with them anyway.  

On our way to the creek, we stopped by to see Leah and she loaded 

them up with all sorts of fancy sugary delights.  Note: Happy baby.  

  

At the creek, I said: "Ok, Elliott... now this character you're portraying is a 

BIG CRY BABY LION.  So you need to really focus and tap into that emotion."

He is such a pro.  Totally method.

And James?  I'm seriously thinking about getting him on a stage.  

He was so amazing as the Tin Man.  Gosh, I love this kid...

And here's Evy doing her "Dorothy face".  Isn't she good?!  

This was super fun and I'm so excited to get these printed and framed.  

I was telling Jeff last night, that I really like that the costumes aren't strictly 

"Halloween themed", because these photos will be cute and relevant all

year long.  I hope you have a great Halloween with your families!   

Update: A lot of people have been asking where we "found" the yellow brick road- so I'll go ahead and let you know now... this is just the plain old terracotta brick path by the Mission.  I just tinted it in editing later. 

Halloweenies and sickies and such...

Yesterday I came to the conclusion that the central coast has gone ahead and skipped Fall this year.  We've gone straight from summer to winter.  I mean, just a week ago we were having an obnoxious heatwave, and now here we are battling the flu, wearing footy jammies, and blasting the heaters.  What gives, weather?!  Elliott doesn't seem too bothered.  Even with a gross runny nose, and less time outdoors...  Give him a Hot Wheels car and an applesauce crusher, and he's pretty stoked on life.  

We kept ourselves busy throughout the week of plague, by trying on Halloween costumes, baking way too many brownies, and catching up on our Caillou.  But we finally ventured out a few days ago and the kids were SO excited to find the goofy Halloween cutout at Trader Joes...

And of course, they made new friends...

Ohhh, these crazy kidlets.  ♥

Amber teething necklaces... help or hype?

Ok guys, we have officially hopped on the amber teething necklace bandwagon...

Whether we'll remain on it, or not remains to be seen.

Elliott's been going through some pretty icky teething pain, and if this helps at all- I'm happy to try it.
However...  And that's a big HOWEVER...  Aside from the obvious BEADS ON A BABY red flag flapping angrily in my mommy brain, I'm afflicted with research-to-death-disease and can't just let "try it" happen without a full-blown investigation into the why behind it all.  No subject or product is safe.  Amber teething necklace?    HA!  Bring on the Law of Infinitesimals and oodles of googles.

What is it?
First, you should know that the term "Baltic Amber" is actually a generic reference to Amber found all over the world.  A true Baltic Amber from the Baltic region (careful, lots of SCAMber out there) is also known as Succinite, and dates from the Eocine period (about 44 million years ago).  Baltic Amber contains roughly 8% of Succinic Acid.  Succinic acid had its hey-day in the 1800's when it was often pulverised and used as a topical ailment for aches and pains.



The theory behind it...
The pain-relief aspect of these necklaces is based on "natural analgesic" power of succinic acid as an absorbent.  This is where I'm having some trouble with the whole thing...  You mean that an 8% concentration of succinic acid is concentrated enough to enter the bloodstream through the skin, reach the site of pain, and still have enough potency to make a difference?  In addition, succinic acid is drying and soothing to skin irritations (i.e. DROOLING), and may heal or prevent rashes or chafing caused by teething.

The controversy...
Skeptics are questioning whether the effects of the necklaces are comparable to placebo.  If you've ever sat up with a miserable baby on a particularly grueling night, you're likely at the point of trying anything to give you both a break.  I suppose this is plausible- but it's hard to ignore the glowing heralds and praise bestowed upon these necklaces by literally EVERY mother I know who has tried them.  And then there's the obvious...  beads on a baby?  Come on, even Evelyn asked me if that was a good idea.  Our necklace is individually knotted around each bead, so in case of breakage- Elliott won't be surrounded by bazillions of yummy choking hazards.  It's also short enough not to be any fun for him to pull on.  Is it a choking hazard?  Yes.  But isn't just about everything?  I'm also not leaving it on during naps/bedtime, and he doesn't seem very interested in it anyway.



The look and the stereotype...
I'm not really into baby jewelry in general- but I'm particularly not into it for a baby boy.  What I am into are happy, pain-free babies who sleep well and let their mothers sleep too.  There's no getting around the fact that this is not an invisible necklace, but associations with "crunchy granola" and "dirty hippy" parenting seem completely misguided and (in my experience) totally off-base.  Unfortunately, this seems to be the general presumption of mothers who use amber teething necklaces.  I chose a lighter colored necklace because I hoped that it would not stand out as much against Elliott's skin. A camouflage necklace seemed a little more unisex to me, I guess.  I don't think we got the desired affect... but that was my approach anyway.  The bottom line... does he look like a crunchy hippy in it?  Yes, but only when he's shirtless and wearing his Saltwater sandals.

Does it work?
 I've asked this question a lot.  Moms on instagram, moms on the sidewalk, moms at the coffee shop, and moms in aisles at the grocery store...  Every single woman I've asked has had nothing but rave reviews for the necklaces.  Literally, not one of them had a single warning, misgiving, or doubt that this was the BEST thing ever for a teething babe.  I think that the word of a mother- in the trenches, is kind of magical and outweighs just about any stigma, or skeptical research you put in front of me.  Is it for everyone?  No.  But neither is baby-wearing, co-sleeping, or breastfeeding.  Am I a crunchy granola hippy mom for trying it?  Hang on, lemme finish my York peppermint patty, and do a google image search and get back to you.

How hot was it downtown yesterday?

This hot.

Either Elliott is dinner, or we have the most ghetto kiddie pool in town.

Disclaimer: I know that not all of you follow my instagram feed- so for those of you who do, I feel the need to apologize for the oft repeated photos and (ahem) super awesome captions.  You should know that when blogging these repeat-shots, I also try to throw in some versions of the event that you haven't seen.  

Case in point...

Elliott attempted to use several different techniques to get himself into his soup pot.

And then suddenly... BLAP!  With a big splash- he did it.

I actually worried that he might be stuck in it.  I mean, look at that back fat squished up against the side.    Next time I'm busting out the cupcake.  But he felt VERY accomplished, and his cranky teething-in-the-heat attitude?  Completely forgotten.  Water is like magic for this baby.  ♥

P.S.  We used a different pot for dinner.  ;)

Pismo Beach...

On Sunday evening, we had a sudden impulse to get our feet sandy...

So we headed down to Pismo Beach, fought through the weekend pier crowd- 

and found this empty spot in the wind to enjoy the last hour or so of sunlight.

On our way out of town, we spotted this funny little surf shop, 

and a surfboard that my very talented grandpa shaped nearly 40 years ago.

Here's to impulsive adventures and unexpected finds.  ♥

A very SLO morning...

Have you walked around downtown early in the morning?

I love the way it feels before the daily hustle and bustle begins.  When the air is cool and it's just coffee drinkers and church-goers out and about...  Our little downtown has so many personalities, doesn't it?  

The early morning peace, the mid-day rush, the evening lull, and the late-night revel.  I can't say that I love all of them, but I certainly do enjoy being a spectator.  

This week the kids and I took advantage of that brief hour or so early in the morning, when the light is golden and glowing and the cocoa tastes extra cozy.  We strolled through the empty plaza and watched a family of creek ducks take their morning baths.  James and Evy did cartwheels and karate kicks that left Elliott in awe.  And just as we finished up our walk and emptied our hot cups, the big, loud trucks began to roll in with deliveries, shopkeepers unlocked their doors, and the air shifted from crisp and light to swollen and sluggish in all of half a block.

On days like this, I think... Summer will never end.

Elliott's new ride...

Sooo...  You know how guys hit their mid-life crisis and buy little sports cars?  

Elliott's getting a head start on that shiz.  

Nana + Papa set him up with this crazy-awesome red coupe, 

and he wasted no time taking it out for a spin.  

In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find him out of it these past few days!   

Just catching up on his nutritional info...

drinking and driving...

showing off its handling + versatility...

cruisin'... and listening to his rap station.  

(No seriously, it has one)

aaand off-roading!

Not pictured:

Eating in it.

Sleeping in it.

+

ummm...  other stuff in it (that starts with a "P" rhymes with coupe).

I think it's safe to say he loves it.  ♥

The littlest big morning...

This is the bedhead that Elliott's bedhead woke up with this morning.  So serious...

So we strapped on our warm hats, grabbed some mexicocoa and hit the road!  Err... sidewalk.  

We had such a fun, busy morning together...  Elliott threw leaves in the Mission fountain, and ate one... sat on a big bronze bear, read tons of books at the book store, did some banking, some church-going, some cookie-eating, and finally back home to catch up with our Caillou dvd watching.

Good great

morning.

1 Year Old, 33 Years Apart...

Jeff, September 1978                                                       Elliott, July 2012

Tough guys...

"Elliott, don't tell people that we snuggle on the couch, watching The Little Mermaid- we're supposed to be tough."

Happy Birthday, Baby Dahl...

Seriously, where the heck did this year go???  

Our teeny, tiny, baby is 

O N E !

Ok, now allow me to get all mushy and *mom* on you for just a minute...

You guys, my BAAAYBEE is ONE!  And eating cake and walking around, smashing toy cars on the floor, and being a real boy!  I honestly feel like this year was such a blur.  Thank God for digital photography, and instagram, and blogging, and huuuge memory on hard drives- because without them I wouldn't even believe that a year had passed.  ONE seems so significant- it's almost too much to process.  So I have a secret...  

Wanna know the very first thing I said to this little boy; and to James, and Evelyn too?  Even in the foggy haze of cesarean drugs, and the deep-seeded acknowledgment of a body flayed open, wounded and emptied...  I've managed to wish a "Happy Birthday, Baby" to each of them the first time we met.  So this was really Elliott's second Happy Birthday.  Right?  Sorta?  Kinda? 

Thinking of it that way just makes it all a little less heart wrenching for me and helps me hold it together.   Holding it together kept me from being that mom- blowing out the one year old's candle for them, with tears running down my her face.  

So I thought: it's special, but it's not the MOST significant day he's had yet...  and I kissed his little head for the 10 bazillionth time, and blew out the candle with a smile.  I had fun.  He had fun.  And we had fun watching him have fun.  Obviously, our entire household is obsessed with this boy.  That's what you get with big age gaps and little babies.  He just makes us all ridiculously happy.  

Which brings me to the image below...  you know- an average day, but with chocolate and balloons:

We celebrated at home, just the 5 of us.  6, if you count our friend the chocolate bear cake...

But he didn't last very long.

Elliott had his very first taste of ooey gooey chocolatey goodness.  

Verdict?

SUCCESS!

♥

Oh, Elli... you are the happiest little blessing to your family and such a precious gift to each of us.  

We love you like craisin cakes and we're just so excited to know you, to help you grow, and to see you discover the world.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABY!