5 Things about Ethan at 5 Months

1. Look who's SITTING!

2. He's also got all the signs of teething - white line on his gum, loads of drool, biting things that he, er, shouldn't. But no teeth yet.

3. Still very particular about his environment while he is nursing. If it is the least bit loud, or bright, or distracting (which I assure you, my home is never) then he will not nurse. So he gets many bottles and I pump for those feedings. Somehow I am still able to make enough milk, which surprises me since in the past the pump and I have had a rocky relationship. Apparently we are now BFF (or friends with benefits?). Still, I enjoy nursing more, so I hang on to what feedings I can and hope we can have a nice, long, run of it.

4. He is showing signs of being ready for solids - drinking more than 6 ounces in a feeding, waking up in the night after sleeping through for many weeks. But he's truly not very interested in receiving food from the spoon - he just makes a funny face and lets it slowly fall out of his mouth. I will keep at it, and hopefully he will develop the same love that the rest of his family members have for all things food.

5. He is a sweet baby. His whole face lights up when you smile or coo at him. He coos back - lots of babbling and cooing! He is not a smile-all-the-time baby though. He can be pretty serious. He likes his naps (in the crib, thankyouverymuch!) Which is also a blessing, I realize, because he is a great sleeper at home.

5.1 His rolls are the most heavenly thing ever!

Ruth and Crystal

We had a great evening with the aforementioned Ruth and Crystal.

Post-biscotti bliss. I had already retired to my pajama bottoms (yes, while guests were still in my home!) thus the blanket.

It never ceases to amaze me how you can cross paths with someone repeatedly and never discover how wonderful they are until you share an evening together. Such is the case with Ruth. (Crystal and I were fast friends from the beginning) I lived with Ruth and hundreds of other people while on the Doulos but knew only a few well. A lesson learned in taking time, even when life is SO BUSY, to invest in relationships and discover the treasure inside those around me!

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

Last week as we were shopping Costco at lunchtime, we of course stopped at the sample stations for "appetizers". The children adored a little biscotti they got to taste and though I wouldn't buy it for them, I promised we could try to make it.

Here's what I came up with and we enjoyed it over coffee with Crystal and Ruth from the ship. We gobbled up the leftovers too quickly the next day. I can't wait to make it again!

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

1/2 oil

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon almond extract (or 1 tablespoon amaretto liqueur)

3 1/4 cup flour*

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 cup roughly chopped almonds

Semi-sweet or dark chocolate (about half a bag of chocolate chips)

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease cookie sheet.

2. In a medium bowl, beat together first four ingredients until well blended. In a separate bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Add more flour if necessary until it is a dough that will hold its shape on the cookie pan. Fold in almonds. Form into the shape of a log the length of the cookie pan. Press down to 1 inch thickness.

3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. Remove log carefully and cool on wire rack. When cool enough to handle, slice crosswise into 1/2 to 1 inch slices (you'll need to use a large sharp knife to cut through almond pieces without the cookie crumbling). Place the slices, sides down, on the baking sheet and toast in oven 6 to 10 minutes on each side. Biscotti should be toasty and crispy, not soft like other cookies.

4. Melt chocolate in a shallow bowl in microwave in 10-20 second increments, stirring each time, until completely melted. Dip biscotti in chocolate and place on cooling rack. Chill in freezer or fridge for a few minutes to harden chocolate.

*I used organic soft white wheat ground on pastry setting. I am unsure of the exact amount because I walked away from the table while Hannah was helping me count out flour cups to tend to the baby. When I returned, there was more flour in the bowl, but we are not sure how much :)

Don't you love the ample use of the word "log" in this post? And that I managed to avoid making inappropriate jokes while we were discussing food?

Signing Time with Adam and Hannah

Our favorite video series is Signing Time with Alex and Leah. OK, the kids would tell you their favorite video series is actually Thomas the Tank Engine, but deep down inside this is the one they really love. Because it's just so stinking amazing.

Early on with Hannah, around 12 months of age, I taught her a few very basic signs to help with communication and manners at the table. After watching the 10 or so Signing Time videos we have, I would estimate her sign vocabulary to be more than 200 words.

To those who wonder if teaching signs impedes language development, I say, have you met my daughter? Chatty McChatterbox! OK, I will stop with the fake Scottish nicknames now.

Here's Adam using putting his signing skills to good use: cookie acquisition.

And now using words, slightly muffled by cookies stuffed in his mouth:

Hannah wanted to show a sign too. Don't blame Alex and Leah; Daddy taught her this one!

Smiley McGiggles

Shuga buga wuga. Ahh... boopy doopy doo! Who's my cute little bouncing baby boy?!? Who's my precious Prince Plumberbutt?!? Coo-coo!

Sorry. I go to my happy place when I see those rolls.

I made these!!!! (Also known as JulieBars)

Oh my goodness, have you ever tried a LaraBar? They are heavenly and healthy, and by healthy I don't mean loaded with lots of ingredients you can't pronounce that are supposed to be good for you, but real, simple, whole food. Take for example Peanut Butter Cookie. Ingredients: peanuts, dates, salt. HELLO! And so scrumptious, you just can't believe it.

These sweet little puppies are pretty expensive though. Deborah and I have been trying for years to hack the recipe. Here we are back in January of 05, making a batch to take with me to the ship.

I think we did Cherry Pie and Chocolate Coconut. I finished them within days of arriving at training in Germany, while everybody else was eating pasta with ketchup. (no offense, Germany - love ya!)

Recently I made a batch of Apple Pie. This is my favorite flavor - not too sweet or tangy, and nutty enough to be satisfying. You could increase the amount of dates or apples to make it sweeter or tangy-er, according to your taste.

Apple Pie "JulieBars"

2 cups dates

1 package dried apple slices

2 tablespoons cinnamon

1/2 cup - 1 cup almonds

1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

Break out the food processor. Grind almonds to a fine meal by pulsing. Set aside.

Soak dates in warm water for a few minutes (until soft) and drain. Process in food processor. Add apples and cinnamon. Process until apples are fully incorporated and as small as they will get.

Add almond meal until dough ball forms in food processor and it is not so sticky. If it is dry and crumbly, you will need to add more dates. Add walnuts and pulse just a few times to mix in. Remove dough and chill. Cut into bars or squares and store in the fridge.

Enjoy with all your vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, and raw food friends!

Hannah's First Ballet Class

Anyone who has spent any time with Hannah knows that her great passion in life is ballet. She has been waiting a very long time (in the life of a 3-year-old, anyway) for this moment: her first ballet class!

She made a card for her teacher:

Her curtsey:

Her teacher, Miss Cara. She is awesome! So sweet and beautiful! We {heart} her.

Lookalikes

Posing

"Mommy, I want to post like a swan for the camera."

Weekend at Grandmother's

Last weekend we went down to Grandmother and Granddad's to celebrate Grandmother's birthday. I won't tell you how old she is, but she's younger than 60. And looking fabulous! We made a totally gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free dinner, including cake and chocolate ice cream:

Fun, and delicious. Deliciously fun.

Going to Peachtree City is always a treat. This is how we roll, PTC style:

We went to a neighbor's pool twice. Adam is not a big fan of swimming, but had fun with cups:

Mark and Hannah both enjoyed swimming:

Ethan and I mostly chilled out on the side.

And the kids got plenty of time in the playroom:

Which is so sweet. Check out all those vintage toys, circa 1977.