Improvising

When the APA says you're still too young to sleep with a teddy bear, you've got to make do with what you have.

Incidentally, Joy was wearing this pink, heart-and-flower-smattered outfit today when I was asked (yet again) whether she is a boy or girl. Perhaps pink is the new blue.

cutest Joy picture of the month

Kimberly, when she saw this photo, said "Awwwww. . . that's the cutest picture of Joy I've seen this month." I must say that I agree.

Back from Potterland

We deeply apologize for the inconsiderate lack of posts on our blog recently. The principle blogger has been somewhat distracted by a certain book about a kid named Potter. What was his name again? Larry? Henry?

Anyway, that's all in the past now. Back to business.

As summer heats up, it's nice to cool off in the pool outside our apartment. Joy has discovered the supernal pleasure of splashing. Wait til she learns to do a cannonball.

And just for kicks here's a funky picture of Joy levitating. No matter which way I turn it, she still appears to be upside down.

Sweet!!!

Yesterday I decided it was time to sample the fruits of my labor (and that our tomato plant).

I harvested every red tomato on the plant, boiled them, peeled them (with the help of my dear and very accomodating husband), tossed them in a skillet with garlic and such, and produced . . .

. . . spaghetti sauce that was astoundingly . . . sweet? It seriously tasted like I had added a bunch of sugar to the sauce. I know some tomatoes are cultivated for their sweetness, but I don't think Better Boy is one of those varieties.

Cooking from your own garden can certainly be an adventure.

Little Pumpkin Meets Big Pumpkin

Joy and I decided to get some fresh air and test out her little umbrella stroller today.

I'm sure the fact that it's blue will lead to lots of questions how old my "son" is, but since the price was right (we happened to buy our Jumperoo when they were giving strollers away), I won't quibble about the color.

Are those cute toes or what?

We decided to go check the progress of one of my favorite front yard gardens. Why plant boring grass on your roadside patch of property when you can grow something vastly more interesting? Like corn, squash, and the occasional bean plant.

This may have been planted as a "Three Sisters" garden. Some Native American groups used to grow three plants--corn, beans, and squash--together because the plants helped each other. Beans nourished the soil for the nutrient-hungry corn, the corn provided natural "poles" for the beans to climb, and the squash shaded the soil so it didn't dry out as fast.

From a nutritional perspective, these plants also provided a fairly balanced diet. Corn and beans (being a grain and legume, respectively) provided the full array of necessary amino acids*, and squash provided vitamins in a veggie that stores well.

Looks like these folks are all set for Halloween. Sigh - that's one plant that just doesn't lend itself to container gardening. Someday.

*This grain/legume pattern repeats itself in the cuisine of many cultures: rice & beans, rice and peas in Uruguayan "ensalada rusa", pita bread & hummus (made from garbanzo beans), and even peanut butter sandwiches. Eating grains and legumes together provides all necessary proteins if you lack the means or inclination to eat lots of meat. It's also the reason grains and legumes always appear on suggested food storage lists.

Define "Toy"

For babies, the possibilities for fun and exploration are endless.

Who says a hanger only serves one purpose? It could be a chew toy . . .

. . . or a dancing accessory.

It's only as we grow older that we forget that even everyday objects can be fascinating. Thanks for reminding me, Joy.

Birthday Picnic

Since my birthday is this week, we gathered with some of Joy's friends and their moms for a celebratory picnic.

Mom wants the cupcake; Joy wants the candle.

Girls on this side, boys on that side. What is this, a stake dance?

That's better. Joy thinks Paul Parker is pretty cute.

Twenty-first Century Baby

After nearly seven months of observing her parents, Joy has apparently reached the conclusion that computers are very interesting things.

She's noticed that monitors display colorful images, and she has even made the connection that the keyboard is an object of considerable importance. Joy particularly likes banging the space bar with her hands or feet (big key = easy target).

Even little, hand-held gizmos are worthy of considerable attention. That might change, though, when she learns I don't have Solitaire or Tetris on there. It's hard to get excited about organizational software when your agenda consists entirely of eating, playing, and sleeping.

Tiny Pepper Follow-Up

I wanted the little pepper from the previous post to fulfill the measure of its creation, so I decided to incorporate it into Friday's dinner.

Don't worry - as soon as I put the camera away, we added a few more toppings.

Harvest Festival

I am a compulsive gardener. Not a particularly skillful one, mind you, but I am persistent. In my current home I don't even have a patch of dirt to call my own, so I bought pots and some soil and did the best I could.

Back in April, my garden looked like this: Tomatoes, with little parsley and cilantro in between . . .

. . . and two bell pepper plants next to the chives and beets.

Three months later, I'm seeing some fruits of my labors. One of the tomato plants has done particularly well.

The pepper plants, on the other hand, labored three long months to produce this little beauty. Sigh - I've never had great success with bell peppers. These plants seem to be getting their second wind, though, so we'll see what the future holds. Maybe they prefer the scorching hot weather we've had lately. Who knew?

Reunion Pics

Drum roll . . . here are the vacation pictures you've all been waiting for. :)

Joy (and her parents) survived her first airplane ride. Fortunately, Baby napped for part of the 4-hour flight, and we were traveling with family who were more than willing to help us out. In honor of this momentous milestone in Joy's life, the folks at Delta gave her a pretty, pink souvenir.

One of the activities at the Gossling family reunion was a trip to the Chickamauga Civil War battlefield. This is a large observation tower there. My mom thinks it could double as exercise equipment (days after climbing those stairs, she was still feeling the burn).

One evening, the dinner included Frog Eye Salad. We all have our guilty little pleasures. This is one of mine - the perfect marriage of pasta and Cool Whip (plus fruit, which makes it healthy, right?).

Since our last reunion three years ago, our family has celebrated the arrival of several new members. From left: Hadley, Mia, Sarah, Sydney, Georgia, and Joy. (Hope I spelled them all right.)

We had nine birthdays in the family around the reunion week, and those lucky folks had the privilege of being dressed as hula dancers by their adoring relatives. I was among those so honored, but the pictures of me didn't turn out well. Really.

The variety show (for talents and "untalents") is a favorite event at every Gossling reunion. This year's show featured a Gossling/Rhinehart/Dixon jam session . . .

. . . and free juggling instructions by Phillip.

That was a lot of fun to cram into one week. By the end we were worn out and ready to go home and rest. Can't wait for the next one, though!

We're Back

Sorry we haven't posted in a while. We just got back from a week in Georgia for a Gossling reunion (my mom's family). We'll post pics, etc. soon, but for now I at least want to reassure you that we haven't been abducted by aliens. Pity, that would make for some interesting posts . . .