Bon weekend!

I spent the whole evening cleaning our living room and doing laundry. There is still a huge bucket+ that needs sifting through behind the couch, but that seems like it will go quicker if I make it a family affair so it will wait. I'm really determined to get this house organized, not to mention child-proofed! The kitchen has come a long way, and the bathrooms as well. The entry way is feeling like a lost cause, but it'll get there eventually. I haven't even thought about the upstairs yet (actually, I think about it all the time, it drives me crazy!) That sewing cave will be the death of me I think.

Anyway, I think I'm feeling especially motivated because I got a much needed break this weekend. We drove up to the Netherlands to see the Keukenhof tulip gardens (that's actually redundant as Keukenhof means Kitchen Garden). Just about everyone we've ever known here has gone at some point, and we've never gotten around to it. Luckily we extended our tour so this year we finally saw it, and I was pretty stoked that Chris agreed to go!


The flowers were, of course, amazing. The smell was like walking through thousands of flowers- oh wait, haha... and there were surprisingly few bees. ;)











I liked the daffodils almost more than the tulips.




And the trees! The gardens are only about 60 years old (which is very young by European standards) but the trees were giant and amazing.



One spring when Dad was here he made me take a picture in front of a Beech tree because it was so big, he wanted to prove to everyone back home how big it was in comparison. So, Dad, this is for you, the most giant Beech I've ever seen and Chris is standing in front to prove how big it actually is.


And we can't forget a traditional Dutch windmill!


Johnny was also amazing. He was very happy to be outdoors. His car limit is only about three hours tho, and the drive takes four. There are all sorts of smashed foodstuffs in his car seat from us feeding him fruit and snacks to keep him from losing it that last hour!



A friend of Chris's took some family photos, which I'll post later. But he was teaching me a thing or two about my camera. I'm kind of camera illiterate and just wing it most of the time, and luckily the Mac has a good editor ;p So I was practicing some indoor shots, in addition to the outdoor flower ones.





And then there was this funny thing.



We stayed the night right on the outskirts of Amsterdam. Most uneventful Amsterdam trip to date since we all fell asleep almost immediately!

But the next morning we went to Tongeren, Belgium, which is home to Europe's second largest antique market. I don't have pictures to share, but I can't wait to tell you my scores; a WW1 copper bugle for Chris, a pretty green coffee grinder (to go with my new-to-me coffee press I picked up a couple wees ago) and a vanity perfume set for Tricia.
Johnny fell asleep in my arms for one of the first times ever and we headed home.

I'm very thankful that we live in a place that has so much to offer. And it's much easier to go back to the daily grind of diapers, dishes and vacuuming on the inside of the house when you know what's on the outside to look forward to!

Busy day...

...That won't be posted on here, haha!

I had a nice little post going and the baby managed to hit just the right key and delete the whole thing.
So, I leave you with these parting shots and then I'm throwing in the towel for the evening.

Johnny enjoying some avocado. He now refuses to let me feed him anything solid, he MUST feed himself! And I use the word 'feed' lightly...


And spring-fresh diapers :)


Hope you are having a good week!

Xo!

Trip to the USA (part one)

Now that we've lived here in Germany for almost five years, taking a trip home is a whole new experience, especially when we haven't been back for a few years at a time. This time it was two years since we've gone and I wanted to go and surprise the family with a baby visit :)

Since we are military we have the option to fly for free on a cargo plane. I've done it several times alone without issue so that's what Johnny and I did for his first flight! We wound up on a C-17, which is a loud, cold cargo plane with little fold-down "jump seats" to sit on. So, earplugs in, we strapped the car seat into the jump seat and away we went!


I have to admit, I was terrified to travel with a five month old. But he did better than I'd have ever imagined. In all we took seven flights in a month and he hardly cried, mostly he just slept.
The advantage to a cargo flight is that when he gets restless I can spread a blanket out on the floor and we can play!


Nine hours later we landed at Charleston Air Force Base and spent the weekend exploring with my mom, Johnny's Oma.

What a pretty town! Right up my ally in the old-fashioned department :)



Our favorite part was the plantation we visited, called Magnolia Plantation. It had a little animal sanctuary and the family was good friends with John James Audubon, who the swamp gardens were named after.

Mom on the tram. It was chilly but the driver had a blanket for us :)


There were several large gators basking in the sun.


And this rooster was obviously the man.


One of my favorite animals :)


In the South, peacocks are sometimes wild and sometimes are raised as protective animals. They are very territorial and very vocal when there is an intruder. Someday we will have some!


Piggy. Ginormous piggy.


Tiny gator.


I'm a sucker for old farm carts.


And random copper swamp musicians.


I lived in Florida for 17 years and never really went to the swamp. It was so, so beautiful and I could have spent all day just watching the birds and the turtles. I'd love to go back when it is warmer and see the trees all green and the flowers blooming.





I really have the bug to travel the States now. I can't wait to move home and do some serious road-tripping! There is so much we haven't seen in our own country, that's in sharp perspective now that we've traveled Europe a bit. Oh, the irony.

Everyone in Charleston was so sweet, I finally understand true Southern hospitality. From there we headed down to Florida, but that's next!

Happy UN-birthday!

Our baby is going to be 6 months old this week!

What a goofball he is!




I made an outside fun place for us to hang out, so that he can roll around a bit in the sun (what? what's that?!). And soon I hope to get a swing set for this active little boy, he needs an outlet and he's not even walking yet!


Now the FOOD! I think he was born to eat. And eat, and eat... He has eaten everything we've offered him, tonight he even had Indian Naan dipped in my dinner's sauce and cucumbers!


At home I've steamed and chopped and baked for the past week and we are now fully stocked for a good two months as far as baby food goes!
Everything that was pureed was frozen in ice cube trays and then stored in Ziploc bags. Two cubes is about a serving, and they can be mixed and matched to my hearts content :) A lot of the time he will just eat what we are eating, all mashy and stuff, but this will make it easy on me for lunch and breakfast since I don't cook much for those meals.

Look at all those bright, natural colors! Weee!


And the other day a friend reminded me that I can start giving him biscuits and so on (derrr...) so I set on making those today.
They are pear flavored and he looooooves them. Unfortunately, so does Luckie!


There is a wonderful website full of recipes and advice on baby food if you're interested in making your own (and I highly recommend you DO!) here. It's fun and easy and a great way to 1. Cut down on waste (boxes, jars, ect..) 2. Save SO much money! and 3. Know exactly what's going into your child, and that it's in it's simplest and most nutritious form.
And you can add as much variety as you want. (Do they even sell avocado baby food?) Please never-mind the idea that your baby's food has to be bland. We, as Americans, have created generations of picky eaters while German babies are eating sauerkraut and Indian babies are eating curry! Mild curry, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg- and so on- are great additions to plain ol' baby food.

Happy baby feeding :)

And happy un-birthday Johnny!!

Take a look!

Johnny and Chris and I have some pictures here as part of a baby-wearing celebration! Yay!!

I love having Johnny so close. He is becoming more opinionated and actually wants down sometimes now, but for the most part he still doesn't mind me wrapping him up and taking him with me wherever, whenever. What a great way to spend an afternoon, wandering around with a happy baby interacting with everyone you come into contact with :)

Ah, baby love!

Excited for summer much?

I just ordered my first real vintage bathing suit! Hooray! I've looked every year for a good ten years and never found what I wanted in a size that would fit. Seems this year XL is a good size to be, hehe...


And I bought Johnny his very first swim diaper:


And Chris his first pair of board shorts since leaving Florida:


What an adorable beach-going family we'll be come June!! ;D

Dinosaur ROAR.

Johnny insisted we make his dad dino cupcakes for his 29th birthday! ;}


They were chocolate vanilla swirl with buttercream frosting, right out of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World.

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We've been traveling but are back now, I'll be posting more again soon. I have loads of photos to sift through first!!!

Johnny and mommy goodness.

It's a little blurry, but this is pretty much my favorite baby photo as of yet:


I. Freaking. Love. His. Face!

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We used to have dogs' nests in the living room, now it's baby nests:


No, that is not Johnny's Kong ball, we are still trying to convince Luckie that this is not his nest.

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The lovelies over at the Rogers' house made a tag blanket for the boy. Love love love the colors! It's the perfect size to tote around and he has already claimed it with copious amounts of saliva.

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It's still winter here, naturally. In fact I heard that it will be winter until May?! That is ridiculous, but at least we are warm in our fashionable sweaters:


I scored this Alpine wool sweater at the thrift shop, brought it home, felted it up and copied a little sweater Johnny wears all the time to make the perfect little winter wearable.

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I've also been working on organizing. Using a tutorial I found here, I made a few bags to stash stuff.
The toy bag, in frontier-kid fabric, full of his favorite toys:


We don't usually tote all those toys around daily, but it will be handy for future travel plans.

Then the diaper bag, in awesome tennis shoe fabric:


I love nursing, it makes the diaper bag soooo simple to pack! The one thing I forget the most is a Ziploc bag for dirty diapers, but soon I will have a real wet bag and it will be easier to remember. I also love German stuff. Those are the best wipes evvverrrr, and are even washable. And they sell traditional flat diapers for cheap that make amazing burp rags. The sling takes up the most room, but usually it's actually on me and not in the bag. I made this to keep stocked and just toss into any ol' bag I want to use that day. I do want to make a real diaper bag and have big plans for a cool one, it's just going to take some time.

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Our very first Calvin Hair picture:


The Calvin Hair photo is a tradition I have been planning for many, many years, just waiting patiently for a little one to come along and grow some hair!

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So, my favorite thing since I've had Johnny is my eyeliner. I had it tattooed on three years ago and it makes me feel a little more human when I hardly have time to even brush my hair.
I went last week to have it touched up, and took the plunge into tattooed eyebrows!

Cat is the best, I'm sure I'd never let anyone else touch my face with a tattoo machine! I know I would have never, ever gotten my eyebrows done if she wasn't so *dang* good :)


And it didn't hurt as badly this time, I'm very happy for that!

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I decided to forgo a garden this year. We'll be gone for a good chunk of the summer and I don't like the idea of wasting time or food. I'll be very happy to be settled somewhere nearer family so that we don't have to take these long trips to see everyone all at once, or we'll have to start planning them in the winter at least.
For now I'm riffling through the pages of Mother Earth News magazine and The Backyard Homestead dreaming of the day when I can fill our yard with food to last the whole year through!
I will be foraging like a fool tho! And I'll be planting an herb garden on the balcony again, and maybe growing a grape vine or two.

Really, really looking forward to summer by the way!!