Hiking and Crawling

What a week! We spent last weekend in Washington, DC with Nouno. We went to our favorite Thai restaurant on Friday night (mmm... drunken noodles) and watched the entire third season of The Office (Schrute bucks!). On Saturday, we planned to attend the Green Apple Festival on the mall, but realized it actually took place on Sunday. Instead, we went to Eastern Market to get fresh ingredients for our Crockpot Dinner Spectacular, had a picnic lunch in a random park, and went hiking at Great Falls National Park.
Eastern Market was an SK dream come true because it was in a charming area with rows of fresh produce and flowers, a flea market, and a bunch of butchers. We gathered everything we needed for a pot roast, some really beautiful red potatoes, and asparagus. We also found a nice loaf of crusty bread. There was a lady selling lilacs by the bunch, but we were convinced she swiped them off the bush we passed on the way out!
We had a nice little lunch of sandwiches and salads while Sampson played in the grass. And after, we lathered up with sunscreen, packed our sun hats, and loaded Sampson up in the backpack. It was the first time we used it and he seemed to like it back there. The park was beautiful, but I was admittedly dressed inappropriately (though very stylishly). I thought we would be at a festival, not hiking up and down rocks! I was wearing a khaki skirt and flipflops and my ankles just could not stand up to walking the several miles to the actual Falls. So we settled for looking at the muddy river instead, and went home to eat.

Gilligan and the Skipper


Men in Hats


New Ride



And in other news, Sampson is crawling!!!!! He's been up on all fours for a while now, and scooting backwards for two weeks now. Last Thursday, he took three little crawls a couple times throughout the day, and Friday he started moving consistently. Now, he's on the the move and very proud of himself! We have quickly become acquainted with the idea of what is a "choking hazard" and "falling hazard." Now, he looks around to see what interests him, and goes for the gold. Gone are the days of leaving him in the middle of the living room so I could run to the bathroom. He doesn't even like the Jumperoo anymore because he can't move forward in it. My favorite is when I am in the kitchen and he is crawling around at one end and hides himself behind the wall so he can peek at me around the corner. I just can't get enough!

Sampson's Girls

Sampson has so many pretty ladies in his life and thus he has quickly learned the art of flirting. He often comes to the dance studio with me where his best buddy Thalia watches him until Dad picks him up. He watches the Artsmart girls do art projects and work on their homework. Then the dance students come in and make funny faces to get him to smile. They love passing him around but are always very polite and ask me first. When Mama Thalia isn't available (she calls him her baby Buddha) he comes into the studio with me while I teach or observe. He likes watching them dance around and he can't get enough of the huge mirror. He bops up and down to the music and sometimes sings a little. Here are some pictures of the Sampson James Fan Club for Emeralds...

Nicole B


Joy


Skylar


Kendra


Nicole D




Yes, yes, he also has some friends his own age. Every Thursday, we go to a Moms' Group at The Birth Center where we thought Sampson would enter the world! Having all chose TBC, we all have similar views on parenting and love sharing new info and products. It's really fantastic to chat with Moms who have similar challenges and milestones. It's really fantastic to chat with Moms who have similar challenges and milestones. I can't speak highly enough of having this support network as a new mother. The group consists of around 8 babies and Mamas... and only two of them are boys! Sam and Sam to be exact (Samuel and Sampson)! The rest of the group is a gaggle of lovely ladies...

G is for Green

With the 38th Earth Day less than a weeks away (April 22), it seems everyone is focusing in on our Mother Earth. The month of April is the perfect time to remember the beauty of our planet since the weather allows us to stretch our legs and enjoy the outdoors. Being green has always been important to me and I attribute this to my father. He would pile the three of us into the Radio Flyer and take us around Hill Crest Circle to pick up trash on our street. It didn't matter how small the piece was, we picked it up and put it in its place (and just for the record, I was always hoping to catch a glimpse of our very handsome- and twice my age- neighbor).
Likewise, I think the idea of sustainable living was romanticized for me by the Laura Ingalls Wilder series. I read all her books over and over again when I was little... I especially liked On the Banks of Plum Creek. I will never forget Laura's description of playing in the cool creek and eating the juicy plums or her Pa working hard in the field so they could ground meal for bread. Pa's spirit of pushing west to find their perfect piece of land so they could lay down their roots was so fantastic. It made me want to pioneer out to find my own perfect place to cultivate and care for.
So here I am in Newark, Delaware and attempting to settle on a borrowed plot of earth. Though not an "Outdoors Girl" per se, I do love nature and (if the weather is at least not freezing) very much enjoy being outside. Now that it is warmer, Sampson and I go exploring everyday. He likes to touch the shrubs and the grass, and he thinks the ducks are funny. I worry that in 25 years, when Sampson has a child, will it even be safe for them to go outdoors? Will people be so full of chemicals from processed food that the average life span becomes 15 years shorter? Will the environment still be able to support ecosystems so that animals can remain in the wild? What can I do, and encourage others to do, to preserve and protect Mother Earth? (and Mother Ocean!:)
Earth Day is the perfect time to set yourself up for improvement. Being greener can be as easy as turning on the light with energy efficient bulbs... or buying cold water laundry detergent... or using non-toxic cleaning supplies to do things you already do. With so much attention on the green and organic phenomenon, even the big box stores are giving shout-outs to Mother Earth. Wal-Mart is expanding their organic food options and addressing sustainability as a campaign for Earth month. Grocery stores are stocking organic generic products. New washing machines use almost 70% less water than old ones and much less soap as well. Cleaning out dryer vents maintains efficiency and dries clothes quicker (using less energy). Check out my favorite blog Green As A Thistle for 365 more ideas! This friendly Canadian spent an entire year making her lifestyle greener.
As for us? We're subscribing to Door to Door Organics which delivers locally grown produce (when in season) right to our door step. Deliveries can be make weekly, biweekly, or monthly. Our location will become a co-op in that other people are having their produce delivered to our house as well. It's very reasonably priced! If you're interested in joining, let me know!
We're also making a concerted effort to turn off (and unplug) as many appliances as possible when not in use (including this laptop!). AND, we have a new plant for our house (thanks Nouno) which will improve our air quality in the house. When we get our new house, we are looking forward to recycling (paper, plastic, and glass) and composting which should drastically reduce our disposable waste. I can't wait to plant fruit trees and a garden... and eventually, adopt a few chickens! (for eggs, not... chicken.)
Yes, we can all stand to be a bit greener and we can probably all do something today that will increase our verdigris. After all, we want to leave a beautiful place for Sampson's children (my grandchildren!) to grow up in.

Riiiiiice!

Here is a super fun vocabulary game that benefits many. Who wouldn't want 1,000 grains of rice?!
Play everyday!

Free Rice

Blue Jeans

The weather here in Delaware has taken a turn for the better! The last few days were down-right balmy. Sampson is enjoying the outdoors and his eczema is clearing up well now. Here are some pictures of him playing on the patio.


Like most babies, Sampson loves to be naked. No pants mean less restriction in grabbing his toes. He was quite happy to be out there with no shirt but I was afraid his knees would get scraped sans jeans. Sampson is thinking about a career in modeling for Calvin Klein...





...or maybe he'll just play with the grass.

A Few of Sam's Favorite Things

Jimmy and I always joke that Sampson is going to grow up thinking that every song is written about him. One of our favorite hobbies is singing songs to Sampson and changing the words... especially Beatles songs. Some of our faves are "Sampson in the sky with diamonds," "strawberry fields for Sampson," and "Hey Sam" (instead of Jude). So yes, Sam does like brown paper packages tied up with strings. It's one of his favorite things. Here are some others...


In the last few weeks, Sampson has become much more aware of his physical abilities. He is fully mobile... in a backward direction! He is very dexterous and is skilled at both pushing buttons and bringing food to his mouth. When he take naps together, he often wakes me by poking at my face until I open my eyes. Nothing is better than opening my eyes to a smiley Sampson. Last week, I looked up from the computer and had figured out how to grab the sleeve of his shirt and yank his arm out. He thought this was endlessly amusing. Apparently, undressing himself has become a form of entertainment. I'll be impressed when he can unsnap his own onesies!





Sampson loves loves loves playing with boxes. On our monthly trip to BJ's, we give Sampson the boxes to play with while we put the groceries away. He likes when I stack them all up and he can knock them down and push them all over the floor. I try to give him different shapes and sizes and stack them all together so he can grab the big ones and flip them over to reveal smaller ones. And best of all, he likes to turn them over and bang on them like drums.





Sampson also really loves to play in the freshly clean cloth diapers. He likes to take them in his little fists and shake them. It makes him happy to kick at them and grab his toes. And he's all giggles when Oma takes one and makes it "dance" over him. When sitting up, I drape one over his head and he pulls it down for his own game of peek-a-boo. He's simply crazy for it.





His latest, and strangest, joy is head scratching. He backs himself up until he's against the bedroom wall. Then he tips his head over to the side and nods "yes." It's like he's a bear cub scratching his head on a tree stump! At first I thought it was just a coincidence that he was nodding while his head was tilted toward the door. But now it's a pattern that he finds his way over there, looks around for the door, puts his head up against it, and scratch scratch scratch! What a strange and charming habit...




And finally, what infant doesn't enjoy a good cigar every now and again? This photo was actually taken on New Year's Eve at the behest of Nouno. And those certainly are not "good" cigars! Sampson indicated that he wouldn't even consider smoking a Philly Blunt! He would, however, love to play with the box.