Judging books by their cover

While I agree that a book shouldn't necessarily be judged by its cover, I do believe that a book with a spectacular cover (and similar illustrations that follow) increases reading enjoyment by quite a lot. Because Doc enjoys books so much, we've been visiting the library a couple of times each month (not that I need any excuse to visit a library). Since the Barkley branch opened, I've started researching books online first then placing holds to be picked up. Barkley is only big enough to hold a couple thousand books but parking is free and its the closest to us so I keep my 20 item hold list maxed out for convenience. Anyway... I really just wanted to share some of my favorite illustrators:

Leo Lionni

Paul Goble

Gyo Fujikawa

Brian Wildsmith

Charlie Harper

He enjoys a little coffee with his morning cartoons

Tubbies

Brought to you by the letter M and the number 17

I finished a velveteen carrot yesterday. It has a rice rattle inside. He can only grip the skinny end so it looks like he's eating it when he brings it to his mouth. This morning we watched the last 10 minutes of Zooboomafoo and the first part of Sesame Street. It just so happened that today's letter was M. Ya gotta gotta gotta have M. I think that muppet was modeled after John Cleese.

Dad is pretty talented

G built a crib and cabinet for Doc before he was born. Sometime when I wasn't looking, he added woodworking to his bag o' tricks. Doc doesn't use his crib at night yet (getting out of bed every two hours is not something I'm interested in). G will convert it to a toddler bed when Doc is big enough.

After nacks blow-out

Murdoch the socialite

Saturday we went to the Farmer's Market and then the fair in Lynden. At the market Doc sat facing outward in the Bjorn and made faces at the hippies. He stared at the cows at the fair. Anytime we go out all the ladies have to stop and check him out because he's so handsome.
Papa read us a little family history yesterday. James Murdoch Stewart had two wives and 18 kids. He is Doc's great great great grandpa. G said he didn't know all that when he picked the name Murdoch, but I think he's alright with it now.

We tried his green pants

I thought Doc might be big enough for his reusable diaper covers but they're still really bulky since I have to fold the inserts. With his clothes on he weighed 14 pounds today. Nice and solid.

The white ninja

He has all white jammies on here and kind of looks like the white ninja when he stretches out. I took these pictures using Photo Booth on the computer. He likes it because he can see himself onscreen before it takes the picture.

He likes the sun through the trees

Most of the time when Doc is mad we can take him outside and he immediately calms down and starts to look around. His favorite is to study the silhouette of the leaves and branches with the sun shining through them. Since its been so hot I decided to use the alligator pool. He napped on the lawn while I sat with my feet in cold water.

When he is active and awake he really likes to sit up now even though he can't do it on his own. He likes being able to look around. I prop him on pillows on the bed and let him fall over (he enjoys it). When I'm reading to him I set him on my lap with his back against me so we can both see.

Look what he can do

He finally got Sophie in his mouth today. He usually grabs her neck and bashes her head into his face but he figured out her legs are a little more manageable. Yesterday he had a full conversation with Jeffrey the jumbo Dala horse while I was getting him dressed. When we read to him he listens intently. He usually prefers being read to to playing with his toys. I don't really want to introduce him to TV yet (although he cranes his neck to try to watch) but I think he would thoroughly enjoy and benefit from some Sesame Street and a little Miyazaki.

This afternoon we had a very deep conversation after an unusually long nap and a full poopy blow-out. I tried to capture some of it but he gets a little camera shy.

The illusive stripy ridgeback...

difficult to train but very sweet once domesticated.

This doesn't count as a real roll, but he moves pretty well now.

I love you like a fat kid loves cake

Today I was working on nacks while Doc and I were doing playtime. He would watch me intently each time I took a bite from my cucumber. I really look forward to when we can share food. All of the things I eat lately are things we used to share with Maribel; yogurt, toast, fruit, seeds. She eats popcorn now, too. I think by three months he may be ready to try some cereal. He'll be extra cute with food on his face.

Because I don't have time for much else, cleaning and eating have become two things in which I find satisfaction. A day when I can clean the floor and enjoy a cup of hot coffee is a big deal. On that note, I'm going to make a list of foods that sound delicious right now:

rainbow roll

Sahagun jasmine truffle

San Pellegrino chinotto

Brewed Awakenings nonfat frozen yogurt espresso shake

miso soup

tofu pho

tofu salad from the Pullman Korean restaurant

Rubio's fish taco

I think all of that would make some fabulous milk.

Doc after nacks

Counting kitties

Mom used to count Maisey's kitties at night. She had thermals covered in pink and purple cats. At night when Doc has his jammies on, I count whatever pattern is on them. These ones have glow in the dark eyes and little black and orange bugs all over.

Happy Birthday Baby Bell!

I talked to her on the phone today and all she said was "I be 2" and "Bye bye Doc." Miss you! Love you!

He's a big kid

His stripy jammies are pretty slim fit but I wasn't expecting something 6-12 to fit him before he was two months old. He has Halloween and Christmas suits the same size so I guess we'll have Halloween and Christmas this month and find something new for the holidays.

Crook neck squash

I still have to put things in his fist for him then he does the shaking and brings the toy to his mouth. He's starting to get very drooly and wants to suck on everything (dada's t-shirt, grandma's arm, mama's face, a velvety crook neck squash...).