Sandwiches

I am not a very organized person,

although sometimes I try to delude myself into thinking that I am.

Before having Orin, I had visions of creating little meals for him.

Fresh fruits and veggies blended to the perfect texture and 

stored away in those cute little baby-food ice cube-sized trays.

Ah, the lovely rows of carrots, peas, and summer squash...

At the time, I didn't realize that there were 

two small problems with my plan: 

1) I am not organized enough, nor disciplined enough,

 to actually make little meals especially for Orin and

 2) he has no interest in eating anything but what we are eating.

So today when I made myself a sunflower nut butter 

and marionberry jelly sandwich,

I made Orin one too. 

I am not sure whether he like eating it or dissecting it better,

but either way it was a big hit.

After all, everything is more fun when you are allowed to get messy.

A Better "Hi"

For those of you who were disappointed with the last video I posted

because of Orin's rather lackluster "hi," here is a better one.

I also forgot to note on the list of new tricks 

that Orin is now giving kisses.

You do not have to believe me because I have yet to catch it on video,

but he now will, on command, give open mouth kisses.

I have never seen anything so funny in my life. 

Baby Gangstas

Yesterday was the first rehearsal for the mafia movie 

we will be filming later this summer.

The movie stars 

Orin a.k.a. 

"What-ja-lookin At?"

Brady a.k.a. 

"I didn't do it"

And Layne a.k.a. 

"I did it... with this metal pole"

The babies spent the afternoon practicing their Italian accents,

trying to look tough while pounding on the glass door

leading to Amelia's balcony,

and smoking cigars.

After a hard rehearsal the babies settled down 

for a little refreshment.

Look for "Baby Gangstas?" 

coming this summer.

Updates

In the last couple of weeks, Orin has learned a plethora of new tricks.

He is now a master at saying "hi", pointing, waving "bye-bye",

and randomly sticking out his tongue like a serpent.

While this video did not capture any of the previously mentioned skills

at their finest, (I blame it on stage fright)

it does illustrate a sample of the new set of tricks.

Enjoy!

Missing Aunty

Yesterday, when we told Orin that his Aunt Andy

would be leaving the next day

he was devastated. 

"I will hear nothing of this!" he exclaimed.

"Aunty can't be leaving... we were just starting to have fun together!"

"I used to think Aunty Andy was scary," he went on

"But now she gives me hugs

and piggy back rides, takes me on walks,

and slips me margaritas when nobody is watching..."

"It won't be the same without her."

"I know... it's terrible" I said.

"I have been having so much fun too."

This morning, on the way home from the airport,

I tried to think about what I could do when I got home

that wouldn't remind me of my sister.

 I couldn't come up with anything. 

It has only been a couple hours and I already miss her so much.

But I can only feel sorry for myself for a little while,

before I remember who is suffering from her departure the most:

Eggy.

The poor dog is still sitting on the porch

 patiently waiting for her to return

so that, once again, he can be the Number One Dog

who gets plenty of belly scratches, table scraps, and extra walks.

Only when Aunty Andy comes to town.

Wanted: More hands

One of the worst parts about being a baby 

is not knowing how to walk.

But it's not the fact that crawling simply takes longer,

it's that crawling requires hands, 

hands that could otherwise be used to carry things.

One way around the problem is to carry said item in one's mouth

and one of the best things about being a baby

is that no object is really off-limits for this purpose.

From toothbrushes to rubber duckies, he is on the move,

and they are coming with him.

Another Visit

Rumor has it that Aunt Andy really likes us

(either that or she just came back for the wondrous 

array of microbrews)

because she is in Oregon visiting us again, this time for two weeks.

The weather during her last trip was not the best,

but the last week has been beautiful, so Orin and I took 

the opportunity to show her the Columbia Gorge 

(we had passed it up last time)

The hike was really nice, all of the Trillium were in full bloom,

dotting the trail with little white flowers.

We came across the standard waterfalls,

and clothespin trees...

but the best part of the hike for me was not having to carry Orin

(aka The Chunk)

If you have noticed that I am constantly fobbing off the 

baby-carrying responsibility on hikes,

 then you are very observant.

Hey, he is heavy... can you really blame me?

More to come.