JourneyLeaf: Life a Page at a Time

Happy Halloween 2009!

Eli does the Woo-Hoo-It's-My-First-Halloween Dance...

 

 

 

 

Happy Halloween, everybody!

 

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Happy Halloween 2012

The Cutest Halloween Ever...

My new parents support group had a Halloween party.  I promise close-ups of Eli's costume later.  (He went as Bam Bam Rubble and Claire was Pebbles Flintstone.)  Here are some of the other cutie patooties who attended...

 

Anneke the Sock Monkey and Julian the Mummy
(Julian's very clever mom made his costume and even whipped up homemade face paint out of corn starch.  Look carefully on his head and you'll see the rubber spider she stitched into place.)

 

Luca the Monster

 

Pia the Monkey (chewing on her costume socks)

 

Somer the Bunny (also in a costume homemade by her mom)

 

Emerson the Tiger

 

Ella the Lion

 

(Baby Mila slept through most of the party and I didn't get a close-up of her.  And Baby Asher didn't wear a costume, although he did sport a festive orange shirt.)

Autumn: White

A leaf so pale that it seems white

 

A curve of fairy ring

Pumpkins

Morning mist on the hillside beyond the fence

 

 

Webs from make believe spiders

 

And webs from spiders that actually wiggle

 

Make believe ghosties

 

And ghosties that actually wiggle

Pumpkin Butter

Last week I made Pumpkin Butter.  Mmmm.  If you've never had it, think Apple Butter only richer in taste.  You can certainly make Pumpkin Butter with canned pumpkin, but I started from scratch because it is easy and fun and makes the house smell good.  But don't try it with a jack o' lantern pumpkin or you won't get a good texture or taste.  You need a sugar pumpkin.  Most grocery stores carry them in the produce section this time of year.

Cut the pumpkin in half, scoop out the guts (saving the seeds to rinse and toast), then place the halves cut side down on a foil-lined baking sheet or in a baking pan filled with an inch of water.  Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until a fork can easily pierce the pumpkin through.  Scoop out the pulp and discard the skin.  Puree the pulp.  Most sugar pumpkins are fairly small and yield about two cups.

The recipe below is one I've developed over time after using several different recipes.  (Some recipes use maple syrup, but I find they leave a bitter aftertaste.)  Pumpkin Butter is good spread anywhere you'd use jam but also as a cookie or fruit dip. 

Pumpkin Butter

4 cups pureed pumpkin (fresh or two 15-ounce cans)
1/2 cup apple juice (the brownish-looking fresh pressed is best)
 Juice of 1/2 medium lemon, seeded
1 cup packed brown sugar
 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine ingredients and stir until smooth.  Cook uncovered over medium heat for a half hour or until thick, stirring regularly.  Pumpkin is generally not safe for home canning, but Pumpkin Butter can be kept in the refrigerator up to a week or frozen for later.  The butter tastes best after a day or two because the spices have time to meld.

Pumpkin Socks

Autumn: Yellow

 

 

Bliss

Disneyland has everything a kid could want for an afternoon:  sling-you-around rides, sugary treats, familiar cartoon characters, gift shops with plastic trinkets....  Similarly, a spa is like Disneyland for mamas with everything a been-too-busy-lately lady could want for an afternoon:  peace, time for slowing down to reflect, and a little sensual pampering.  

Yesterday my "Wednesday Moms" group met at a spa in San Francisco.  We stepped through the door, leaving the rush of the city behind.  The lights were dim and the air was scented with something herbal.  We hung our street clothes in lockers and changed into fluffy white robes.  There was access to a sauna, Cool Mist Room, whirlpool, and Quiet Room plus an appointment for a massage.  For several hours we drifted between conversation with friends and various quiet activities of our choice.  Everything we needed was at hand from citrus-flavored water to another thick towel.  All was spotless and staff quickly whisked away the clutter of used towels or cups.  Other staff members came by from time to time to offer a bites of frozen lemonade or frozen grapes, or perhaps a sample of a facial mask.  The massage therapist assigned to each person worked during your massage to find and soothe your particular tension spots.  When you look after a baby pretty much all day every day, it is so lovely to be looked after yourself for a little while.

The spa is also a feast for the senses.  And that is so welcome because often the busier we are in life, the more the sensual is pushed away.  Sometimes I get to the end of the day and realized I enjoyed my child yet hurried through my morning shower, wolfed down my food, and forgot to stop and smell he roses because I was busy pushing a stroller.  At the spa, the senses are courted.  The Quiet Room has recliners separated by gauzy curtains for privacy and soft lap blankets.  If you want to feel like a cliché, you can place cucumber slices soaked in cool rosewater on your eyes.  The showers and changing rooms contain various soothing and lovely-smelling beauty products to sample.  There are damp, chilled cloths soaked in peppermint scent to rub on your skin -- perhaps while you float in the balmy water of the whirlpool.  

A day at the spa would have been unthinkable for my mom.   The extra expense would have been impossible, but I also remember the church we attended at the time encouraged self denial without much thought about balancing needs.  When I get a chance to enjoy a spa day, I still feel a twinge of guilt and wonder what my no-nonsense foremothers might have thought.  Yet I know that yesterday I felt myself slowing down for the first time since my book project picked up again.  Eli and Brian were safely at home enjoying each other's company.  I was in a space where I had no tasks waiting to be done (much less multitasking).  In my cozy robe, I finally had time to think about some long term goals, savor each bite of the apple I ate, and know that I was doing something for myself to help restore balance.  Even if I was self-indulgent, I came home a more cheerful mama and wife.  It was so worth it.  

Peace...

  

Home Again

A boy and his banana are glad to have Papa safely home.

 

Thursday's Adventures

We went to the Jelly Belly factory today.  As I was leaving the tour, the guide said, "You were here last week, weren't you?  I remember your baby because he has Tic Tacs attached to his stroller for a toy."   (Insert sheepish grin here.)

 

Amberlee and Norma gave the tour two thumbs up.

The gift shop afterwards was pretty popular...although Eli didn't seem to understand what it was all about and was happy to just have milk.  (Those days are numbered, aren't they?)

 

The most popular gift shop item always seems to be the Belly Flops, bags of jelly beans that either were too small, too large, or got stuck together into yummy blobs.

And the happy news is that Brian arrives home soon!  Here are some photos taken on the lawn outside the Jelly Belly factory to tide Papa over until he can sweep Eli up for a big hug.

Happy Wednesday

    Wednesday we did a little shopping in Oakland and Emeryville.  It was music day too.  Norma and Amberlee went to class with us and afterwards we joined other parents and babies from the class for a walk to the Rockridge neighborhood for lunch.  

    My favorite part of the day was evening, sitting around the kitchen table making bead projects together.  Amberlee made a necklace while Norma and I worked on bracelets.  Talking.  Eating Trader Joe's licorice candies in the shape of scottie dogs.  Asking each other's advice on our projects.  And those mid-conversation peals of laughter that made us accidentally drop beads all over the floor.  Fun girl stuff!

            Zzzz.  Tired.  I'm still behind from Monday night when I had a hard time falling asleep.  Down the hall, Eli must have sensed my wakefulness and decided he wouldn't stick to his usual snooze time either.  He was happily hooting and hollering in his crib at 4:55 AM.  Oy!  What's a sleep-deprived mama to do?  Since he wasn't crying, I tried the pillow-over-the-head method.  Finally, I knew he wasn’t going to go back to sleep on his own.  I trudged down the hall, wordlessly scooped him up, and carried him back to bed with me.  
    For some reason, when I get the bright idea to see if Eli will fall asleep with me, I always picture our idyllic early naps – delightful snuggles with a newborn baby who could barely move.  “Sleeping” with Eli now usually involves drooling, babbling, poking, wiggling, and hair pulling.  I have to build Fort Knox out of pillows to keep him safely away from the sides of the bed and, because Eli can't seem to sleep without his feet in my face, I somehow end up cramped for space on a king sized mattress.  Tuesday morning was no exception.  He constantly wanted to crawl over me (which would have meant tumbling from the bed to land head-first on the floor) or to stand up using the bars of the headboard so he could shake the whole bed with his bounces.  I kept flipping Eli onto his tummy and whispering, “Night, night!  Night, night!” 
    Finally, out of desperation, I sighed, “Please, Eli?!  Mama is so tired!”  In the semi-darkness, Eli stopped moving for a long time.  Weighing his options, perhaps?  Then he began patting my head.  Pat, pat, pat.  Pat, pat, pat.  I felt a little like a puppy, but at least Eli wasn’t trying to climb all over the place.  Finally, he rolled onto his back, staring up at the ceiling and playing with his fingers.  I kept peeking over at him and each time his eyes were wide open.  I suddenly had the feeling that he was trying very hard to be good and still to help me.  Maybe that was all in my head, but such a feeling of tenderness washed over me that I swooped him up for long smooches and carried him downstairs for his morning bottle.  And as soon as he drained it dry, he closed his eyes, sleepy at last!  Now I was full of both tenderness and gratitude.  I carried him back upstairs and eased him into his crib.  We both slept until after 8:00!

(We miss you, Brian!  Hugs and kisses to you...dry ones from me and drooly ones from Eli.)

Extra photos just for Papa...

 

Off to Petaluma...

With company in town, you know you are in for fun adventures.  Eli thinks the fun adventures start before you leave home.  All those interesting goings-on in the guest bathroom!  He hung out at the baby gate, watching with fascination as Amberlee sang, blew bubbles with her gum, and put on mascara.

 Tuesday's real adventures took us to the city of Petaluma.  The destination?  Mrs. Grossman's sticker factory!  I've used Mrs. Grossman's products for years but didn't know the factory was near my new California home until Tracy suggested a visit.

We got a behind-the-scenes tour and learned how they make various types of stickers from start to finish.  Below is a roller die used to cut flowers out of long strips of sticky paper.

 

There are museum displays of stickers by year.  I cringed when I recognized the teddy bear and heart stickers from the early 1980s that I used to paste all over my school notebooks.

At the end of the tour, you get a free packet of stickers for decorating a postcard and get to play around in their art room.

It was something of a drive to get there -- almost an hour -- but we all had such fun and left with fat bags from the on-site outlet store.  Over a cheeseburger lunch at In n' Out, we couldn't stop talking about the interesting things we saw.

(Love to Brian far away!)