inspiration

It's time for Drew to begin his art education. We will start with Chuck Close at the Austin Museum of Modern Art. This will be the first exposure (in person) for both of us, though I've admired his work since I was in high school.

Then, next Monday we will attend the Austin Children's Museum weekly event "Baby Bloomers." He loves music (can't go to sleep without it), so hopefully we can stay long enough to enjoy both storytime and music.

There may be some protests from his dad on being exposed to art...but I have to balance all the sports that are watched in this house! He needs to be well-rounded, or at least keep me entertained during football season!

blog facelift

The "creative," right side of my brain needed a bit more interest...We'll see if this is enough, or too much. What do you think?

Thanks to the O'Connor Family blog for the lead!

baby talk

this made my day...

After searching Craigslist for a tree swing for Drew, I began perusing the "Gigs" to see if there were by chance any one-time creative opportunities out there. Instead I found this posting. It has to be my favorite of all time:

"need a hole dugged" (northwest austin)

Date: 2009-08-23, 8:48AM CDTReply to: gigs-7m8yj-1337740325@craigslist.org [Errors when replying to ads?]

I just need a hole dugged today for a small time capsule to be placed. Probably 3 feet deep and 2 feet across. I do not have a shovel. Thanks!

Compensation: negotiable
PostingID: 1337740325

yoga baby?

This is one of those moments rarely captured on film. Drew has done this a few times...that we've seen...He basically wakes up for a moment, sits up with his legs straight in front of him, then folds in half and goes back to sleep. It's his own version of "child's pose" in yoga. I love it. We did try rolling him to the side once and when we went back to check on him he was in the folded position once more. Now we just let him sleep in peace.

"happy birthday Mckenna!"

sick baby

It was bound to happen someday. Somehow one out of three is sick when Doug or I are out of town. Doug is away at summer camp with the church kids. Drew managed to pick up some kind of bug and has been "running fast" these last few days. I also learned first hand why the Poltergeist movies chose projectile vomiting to convey evil spirits. That's not at all to suggest that Drew is in any way a bad baby, he has been a saint through all of this. His demeanor has gone from joyful, energetic and personable to stoic, calm and cuddly. Having a nine month old fall asleep on my lap has been the highlight of the last few days.

Not only has he been put through the ringer with his own tummy issues, but he underwent some serious character building last night. After his second instance of vomiting in a 24-hour period, the nurse told us to come in at 7:00 pm. I had already put him down for the night, so being ripped out of bed and whisked away to the doctor were probably not in his plans. Still, he babbled all the way to the doctor's office, probably telling his toy airplane how mean his mommy was - Little did he know. Then the doctor told us he just had a virus, thankfully, but needed as much liquid back in his body as possible. Drew and I spent the next hour battling it out with an oral syringe and Apple Pedialyte. If he grows up to hate apple juice, we will know why. About 10 minutes into the fight he "let loose" and I spent the next 50 minutes wearing a portion it. A sweet nurse came to the rescue with an extra set of hands and a sense of calm.

Thankfully he was able to complete the "challenge" given to us by the doctor. Had he not succeeded, we would have spent a few more hours in the hospital with an IV. Instead of the hospital we spent the extra time at home with the same challenge from the doctor, but at least we were in the comfort of our own living room. We battled it out and I guess we both won. I gave in a bit early and he took every ounce I forced into his mouth.

Even though Doug has been away for these last few days he has been super supportive. After all this, I'm even more thankful for him and can't wait to have him back home!

finger foods

We're a bit behind on this...I've been hesitant to start Drew on any kind of solid food because he has a tendency to gag easily. The first few bites of Rice Krispies were met with some uncertainty, but he now loves the new sport. He also enjoys sticking them to the table, the floor...his face. It's hard to tell in the video, but one of the krispies was a real clinger!

sass

mommy + drew

daddy + drew

vacation bible school - "the boys"

giggle box

This is Drew's typical response whenever Doug or I walk up to him in his highchair. Such a happy guy!

Oh, and don't miss out, he likes to throw in a little bit of sass at the end...

day 1: army crawl!

pool days

chaa-ching!

Gerber Organic Sweet Peas - $1.40 per package =  2 servings = $0.56 per serving

Dried Split Peas - $0.85 per bag = 25 servings = approximately $0.04 per serving

Seriously?  Why would I continue buying Gerber?  Easy?  Yes.  But one hour of cooking will save me around $50 in the next three months...that doesn't include all the sweet potatoes I made last weekend and the bananas I plan to mush and freeze next weekend...then some mangoes...and so on and so forth...

prune king

Check out those dimples!

A special thanks to Aunt Allie for the outfit!  

happy mother's day!

newest trick = clapping

sweet pea

Supposedly babies come up with new tricks every day.  Lately it's been new sounds...he'll try out a new sound for most of the day.  Today when he woke up from his nap he would only give me a tight-lipped grin.  I assumed he'd been hanging out with Daddy all day and was trying to be serious.

"home"

Today's work included creating a series of images for a local art exhibition/fund raiser at The Jones' arthouse in Austin.  A couple of years ago we submitted images of two other "homes"- a wasp's nest and a bird's nest (included below).  This year I came across a cocoon while working in our yard and thought it would be a great compliment to our previous submissions.

mmmmm...

Drew loves the rice cereal and now a little bit of sweet potoatoes!  He has two "tricks" when he eats...He'll either say "mmm" after each bite or blow all the food out of his mouth.  I shouldn't laugh when he does it, but it's just too cute.

sound required

Bring on the belly laughs. I remember my nephew Carter had some of the best belly laughs when he was Drew's age. Drew has just started to really let them go. This one was tough to capture in video form, so I instead recorded the sound only. These particular giggles required mommy jumping up and down, hair high on top of my head and probably the stupidest grin on my face...which also happens to be the reason video was not an option. It's a very good thing there is no visual proof of my ridiculous behavior!

our weekend with Nana

good giggles

These moments are tough to capture!

midsentence

Doug and I are fairly quiet people, especially at home. Drew is certainly going to keep things lively. I have a feeling he's going to be quite the talker when the day comes. Until then, I enjoy his babbling...he discusses the day with all his stuffed animals, babbles on and on to the pacifier, and of course the cup in the bathtub. It's pretty much his best friend, next to the pacifier. Maybe it's because there's a Longhorn on it.

Oh, and just for the record. I lay awake at night worrying he is not eating enough during the day. What does it look like? He's a chubby little bunny. I must be a mom.

5 months

a Dr. Seuss version of Tigger

Today was his first ride in the jumper...it lasted longer than any toy ever...a good 30 minutes. Plus, he went to sleep for the night in less than 20 minutes. That's a record, as of late.

variations on a theme

happy camper

toothpaste font

Check out the animations at the end of the page:

02.26.09

Welcome to the world, Cooper Twist! Andrew can't wait to play with all of his male cousins - and you make #8!

12:42 am
8 lbs. 4 oz.
19"

rock-a-baby

First day in the exer-saucer!

play time

blame it on the hormones?

My sister warned me that the thick mane I had acquired during pregnancy might not last. For a while I doubted her and even thought she might actually be wrong about something, for once! ;) In this case, she was correct. My hair is dwindling back to its original density and losing some of it's "natural curl." Darn those hormones.

Or is it?

Drew's hair is all but gone these days. Coincidence? Seems strange to me that these two events should coincide. He looks just as good with a "shaved" head as his handsome dad.

toes!

check me out

Drew sounds.

"looky, looky...i found my hands!"

a call to creativity

first day

Here's Drew all bundled up for his first day of school - okay, daycare. I like to think of it as school since he'll have new stimulation and will hopefully gain some social skills from being around other kiddos.

So far, I have to say, he's not as smiley today. Hopefully we didn't hurt his feelings. More likely he's exhausted from an exciting first day.

merry christmas!

sneaky smiles

finally, some payback!

After all the effort required in the first few month of parenting...we finally have a baby who will smile back at us! Doug and I were hanging out at home this morning listening to the snow melt off the roof. I walked Drew over to the window and all of the sudden he just glowed with the biggest smile you have ever seen. He then proceeded to coo at us. The snow was no longer the only thing melting at that moment. He could now get away with just about anything, as long as he keeps on smiling!

Bring it on little one!

frogger

happy thanksgiving

Our very own Thanksgiving turkey. Look at those chunky thighs - he's definitely putting on some weight! Here is his first glimpse at the Twist cousins.