Going to School

Soren likes to arrange things neatly and the other night he carefully and with great attention lined up a bunch of little critters on the edge of the tub. I asked what they were doing and he told me they were going to school. He kept adding to the school line until the ENTIRE perimeter of the tub was filled with eager students. Every single creature faced the same direction and I loved watching him select animals to add to the line-up. Disaster struck when Asher punched several of the animals in the face and knocked them all over the place. Oh the mayhem! Poor Soren was devastated and I had Asher help him reclaim all of his lost buddies. Oh twins.

14 Weeks

At fourteen weeks pregnant I feel really great! I am not extremely tired by the days end and I feel like I could do anything active like run or hike or whatever and not feel anything beyond what would typically happen were an out-of-shape gal to attempt exercise. I am HUNGRY all the time and want to eat every two hours or so and I try to make wise choices but the spread of my hips and bootay would suggest otherwise.

I am sporting a full on baby bump! It may still be confused for 'front butt' but I feel like my stomach looks pregnant even if also a little chubby.

My maternity wardrobe? Pitiful. I have two pairs of maternity pants, one of which I can't wear until the obesely large months and I'm not sure I even want to wear them this time. I have roughly four or five tops and they are all more appropriate for the larger months. I have one skirt and now I have two dresses. I feel strongly that maternity dresses are the most flattering and comfortable of attire. Unfortunately, finding preg dresses that are long enough is madly challenging. I did, however, have great success in finding a $20 dress at Target online and it is ridiculously cute. Last pregnancy I was able to borrow clothes from friends and I'm just not that lucky this time. Borrowed clothes makes a huge difference!

Jamie leaves May 24 for Ecuador and I reallyreallyreallyreallyreally hope we can get a sonogram before then because I refuse to wait until he gets home to find out the sex of this baby babe. I also loathe the idea of going to that sonogram alone but it's better than waiting!

Asian Flavor Fest

I have had some very pronounced food preferences this pregnancy. First it was Indian food and now it is almost anything Asian inspired--especially if it contains soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame seeds or oil, garlic, ginger, and that tasty Vietnamese garlic chili sauce.

I have two recipes to share, both of which fantastically satisfy my Asian cravings.

Peanut Sauce

1/4 cup black sesame seeds (or white if you can't find black)
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
1/4 cup hot water
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar

Place all the ingredients in a food processor or blender. Process, scraping down the sides of the bowl several times, until the sauce is smooth, about one minute.

I love this sauce and could probably just spoon it because it is that good. I have been eating it on top of roasted veggies with rice. Try it! (Recipe from Jack Bishop's "A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen.)

Sesame Noodles with Asparagus Tips

The Marinade

1/4 cup sesame oil
5 tablespoons dark sesame oil (I omitted this)
7 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons Chinese black or balsamic vinegar
3.5 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons chili oil (I used the Vietnamese chili garlic sauce)
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

The Noodles and Asparagus

Salt
2 pounds asparagus, trimmed and thinly sliced on a diagonal
1 14 ounce package thin Chinese egg noodles
10 scallions, including the firm greens, thinly sliced
1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted until lightly browned (I buy mine already toasted)

Mix the marinage ingredients together, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the salt and asparagus. Cook until bright green and tender but still firm, just a few minutes. Scoop the asparagus out, rinse it under cold water, and set on a towel to dry.

Pull the noodles apart with your fingers, add them to the boiling water, an give them a quick stir. Boil until tender but not overly soft, tasting them often as they cook. It should only take a few minutes. Pour the noodles into a colander and immediately rinse under cold water. Shake off the excess water.

Toss the noodles with all the marinade and most of the scallions, sesame seeds, and asparagus. Mound them in a bowl or on a platter, then garnish with the remaining asparagus, scallions, and sesame seeds.

I made this for dinner on Sunday and it was very pleasing. I had enough noodles and sauce to prepare this dish again tonight only I added steamed broccoli. I also topped each serving with a fried egg (hard) and a healthy splash of Siracha. Perfect! (Recipe from Deborah Madison's "Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.")

Rocking Out to Weezer with Asparagus

Soren demonstrating how two pieces of asparagus can be a violin and bow.










"I'm playing drums!"

Asher and Soren have a cute little friend named Jonas and often I will hear one of them say, "I'm Jonas!" They do this a lot but usually with cousins: "I'm Camden!" or "I'm Gage!" After hearing Asher declare he was Jonas I had the bright idea to play Weezer's "My name is Jonas" for them and let's just say it was a HUGE hit with the two-year-old twin set.

Did you know that the song makes reference to 'choo trains' and 'dozers?" Yeah, I was not kidding when I said it was instantly popular. I should have just put it on repeat for the number of times The Deuce asked to hear it again. What made this whole experience even more enjoyable was watching Asher and Soren run and dance around while holding and flailing pieces of asparagus. Soren used his asparagus as a violin and Asher was happiest using his as drum sticks. What a pleasure these boys are with their creative energy and joy for play and fun.

Sew Sara Giveaway

My friend Sara has a super sweet Etsy shop full of personalized sewn goodies. She made Asher and Soren's one-year t-shirts. Sara has new items in her shop and is having a give-away! Check out her shop!

Go to her blog for the give-away!

Big Boy Hair Cuts

There is TOO much growing up happening at our house. Last week we took Asher and Soren to the Barber shop for serious hair cuts. Since they had been to the barber shop once before they acted like pros when it comes to hair cutting business. The barbers put special little booster benches on the chairs and suddenly Asher and Soren were sitting calmly and getting their hair cut. I was so proud of them as they bravely and courteously sat still for their barbers. Asher managed to GRIN the entire time--he was just too cute. The woman cutting Jamie's hair remarked, "They better than adults."

Watching their gorgeous curls fall to the floor truly seized my heart and I started to cry. I quickly composed myself to prevent making a scene in that tiny shop but it really was difficult to watch their beautiful hair fall from their beautiful heads. Their hair was SO short! As I lamented the loss of their 'baby' hair, I couldn't help but celebrate the added energy that their new cuts seemed to give them. Suddenly I could not stop staring at their comely profiles and undeniably boyish looks. They were so happy when the cuts were over and they played about the shop and reveled in the selection of complimentary lollipops.

This past week we lost locks of blonde and strawberry blonde curls and we lost the cribs. It has been TOO much for me--but it's also good. Growing up happens without pause and that's okay, as long as I take the time to memorize details and document them. Oh the details, the sweet details. Sometimes I feel like I need to wear a scientist's white lab coat and follow my boys around with a series of charts and notebooks so I can accurately point to the day that their baby cheeks slimmed to reveal toddler features or their language took the leap from a favorite few words to favorite few sentences. It's an extraordinary experience watching children grow. I love it.

No Crib = Party Party Party

Jamie had the genius idea this past weekend to take away the cribs and introduce Asher and Soren to the freedom of a 'big boy bed' (read: mattress on the floor). I would have been happy keeping Asher and Soren in their cribs until they were three--why mess with something that works? I went along with the plan but quickly realized that none of us were ready for what happened.

When we showed Asher and Soren their new beds Asher exclaimed, "It's my favorite bed!" Soren kept saying, "No crib no bubble!" They were so cute and so excited. After going through our usual bedtime routine we left their room with the two of them cutely in their beds all cozy with their taggies and blankets. Shortly after shutting the door the frat party started. I mean, it was a PARTAY!! Having been confined to the space and security of a crib for their entire lives the freedom of movement was a little TOO exciting and a little TOO tempting. Suddenly they were jumping on their beds, jumping on each other, throwing their blankets, throwing their toys, and most shocking of all, emptying their dresser of its contents. Holy mayhem.

I quickly realized that I was not ready for this and had no strategy. I had not read any literature on how to transition a toddler from a crib to a bed. I had no idea how to help them through this process and how to not go insane myself in the meantime. It didn't matter what we said or what we did--they wanted to play and be anywhere but in their bed. I had worked so hard to get an effective bedtime routine and it felt like we had all regressed. Finally Jamie had to lay in the room with them to keep them calm and eventually (TWO HOURS LATER) they fell asleep.

Repeat craziness during yesterday's nap and last night's bedtime. Jamie again laid in their room for their nap and I pretty much refused that strategy last night because I don't want to establish and then have to annihilate a new sleep crutch.

Does anyone have advice on how to get TWO toddlers to stay in their beds? My main source for advice, my sister, never had this struggle. My other source for advice, my sister in law, didn't have this problem with her twin boys because she waited until they were three to take away their cribs. Please, any suggestions or tips would be awesome.

(When I wasn't shaking my head wondering how we were going to get through the craziness, I was laughing at all the hilarious things Asher and Soren were doing and saying during those 'hours of liberation.' I heard Asher say, "My feet are on the wall. Aunt Lisa! Uncle Mike is a strawberry farmer. He has a barn." While Asher was saying all of this, Soren was saying, "Monkey, you have a poopy diaper. I need to change your diaper." It was that kind of chatter, often interrupted by bursts of laughter, that was occurring. On many occasions I would have to turn my head to hide my laughter.)

My S Man

I am not sure why Jamie and I were so blessed to have and raise twin sons but I am grateful that we were presented with this enormous and wonderful responsibility. Now that I am carrying ONE baby I feel more and more aware of how special it was that we got pregnant and had twins. When I see other families with twins, especially twin babies, my heart surges and I recognize that they too have been hugely blessed.

Raising twins has its challenges and any mother of twins will tell you that their children regularly flip-flop roles or behaviors--one will be difficult at bedtime while the other is charmingly easy and then a week later the two have reversed roles, for example. I often find myself saying, "Soren makes having twins easy." He is such a gentle, happy, and considerate child. He listens and pays attention. He brightens around other children so I think he really cherishes his twinhood.

I find myself discovering new emotions as I watch my children grow. I feel so in awe of their charm and intelligence and I find myself often seized with wonder at how quickly they are growing up. I watch how much Soren loves his little neighbor friends and I hope that they treat him as kindly as he treats the world.

Soren has started saying, "How about..." and I get so excited to hear how each sentence will end. Soren expresses himself easily and I love his language--he drops his L's and like Asher, says manana for banana. I love the beginnings of language and I love watching Soren grow up.

My A Man

This handsome little guy has been through a LOT lately. First he had that wretched fever that never went away until we discovered that in addition to said fever he had a nasty ear infection. After ten days of antibiotics to kill the ear infection Asher broke out in a heinous case of hives. Back to the doctor to learn that he is allergic to penicillin. He was such a calm and agreeable patient--quietly and calmly letting the doctors poke, touch, and listen to his little body. What is even more remarkable was that on the way to the doctor's office he said, "Asher happy. Asher like going to the doctor." He is a tremendous character.

Asher continues to amaze us with his sense of humor, his wit, and his generous emotions. He doesn't hesitate to announce gleefully, "Asher happy!" He does not exercise any restraint when he is offended, sad, or upset. We love him for all of his mighty emotion.

This evening I told Asher and Soren that we were going to the barber shop to get their hair cut. Asher stunned me when he said, "Stripes spinning! Over there!" He remembered the spinning stripes outside the barber shop. Having twin two-year-olds is such a pleasure. Just at they exercise zero restraint in expressing emotion, they exercise zero restraint in their creativity and imagination.

I am so blessed by my happy Asher man.

13 Weeks

As far as I am concerned, the first trimester is behind me. It seems to have equally gone by quickly and taken forever to pass. At 13 weeks I feel great and have only residual moments of nausea but I continue to loathe anything with a fake sweetener like GUM, eew. I feel energetic but always very tired at the end of the day.

I'm big. I only have one pair of work maternity pants so I've worn that pair of pants TWO days in a row, which is kind of appalling to me. I have a shortage of maternity clothes so I am trying desperately to blend non-maternity with the few maternity pieces I own.

Soren will proudly point to my chest and say that there is a baby in there. My chest is about the same size as my growing stomach so he's nearly right. Soren insists that the baby is a boy and now that Asher no longer claims that the baby is a dog he insists that it is a girl. It's a toss up! I still think this little one is a boy.

Jamie is headed back to Ecuador and will be leaving pregnant me with Asher and Soren for the latter part of May and all of June. I'm trying to have a good attitude about it...

Lizards at River Farm

The first lizard sighting of the season.





Jonas and Asher get a close look.


A little shed with a garden on the roof!

Weeks ago when the weather was in the 90s and Asher's fever was in the 100s we took a trip to River Farm with some friends. I love that quiet little spot on the Potomac and it is especially radiant when all of the azaleas are in bloom so I hope to visit again this week. The highlights of the visit were the lizards and enjoying a tasty spread of food with friends.

New York: The End.

The library at Columbia. Extraordinary!


I love campus quads and Columbia had one of the most beautiful I had ever seen.


It's tough to tell but this silly flag had droopy stars and wavy lines.


One of the many entrance points on the High Lines.


Masses at the High Line.


Elevated green space along the tracks.


Brick and windows looking lovely.


Oh yeah. Sporting my new $7 Chelsea outdoor market sunglasses.


Views of the Hudson.


The benches had great design and were born right out of the ground!


Can you find the Statue of Liberty?


This was a curious amphitheater with a view of...the street!




Chelsea Pier.




The Subway!


I took all of these photos as we walked from our hotel to the subway to go home...it was a stunning couple of blocks.

One of the highlights of our New York trip was visiting The High Line city park. Stretching from the Meat Packing District through Chelsea, the city created a park along the elevated route of an old rail line. A path follows the tracks, which have been covered with plants and flowers. The views from the park were magnificent--the river on one side and the variegated curiosities of a stunning cityscape on the other. The park was bustling with people and I enjoyed being there with my mom. After cruising the High Line we walked to the end of a cement pier and spied the Statue of Liberty off in the distance. We marveled at the gorgeous weather and the fun we had been having. Feeling exhausted, we planned to hit the Chelsea Market then head home for a relaxed evening in our hotel.

Chelsea is the one neighborhood that I seem to consistently visit with every trip to New York. I love that every trip reveals new neighborhoods to explore and adore about the city. Going with my mom was really special and I am grateful we'll always have New York. She was a fabulous companion, willing to let me march us block after block through the city in search of wonderful food and memorable sites. I think every daughter should take a trip to New York with their mom.

I'm not sure when I'll explore the streets of New York next but when that time comes, I know I'll love it and never forget it.

P.S. A few of my NYC observations: 1) People kissing EVERY where and at all hours of the day. 2) Fathers with their children--take not world: father's in NYC are openly caring for their children. 3) Strollers (especially $1200 ones) everywhere! Largely this was a product of staying on the UWS but it was still fun to see so many wee ones. 4) Older love! I saw so many older couples on the Subway deeply in love. It was sweet. 5) Apparently all women in NYC wear their skinny jeans tucked into boots.