Ski trip!

You know what they say... best laid plans and all...


The idea was that the three of us were going to spend the night in a yurt. Of course we had never been skiing with the girl, nor had we even located our ski gear (still in boxes somewhere), nor had we even decided how we would work out the Mike and Joanna food. Furthermore there was a bit of a miscommunication with the rental place and it ended up that we could not get the ski buggy for the night.

Undeterred, we packed up all the absolute essentials into a backpack and drove to the trailhead. Almost immediately it became apparent we weren't going to be spending the night in the yurt. But since we were already at the trailhead and it was a beautiful warm day we skied around for a few hours.


Violet was incredibly patient with the whole process. That is until her hands started to get too cold, so we turned back. Joanna had a blast. Mike had a blast, though he was surprised how difficult it is to ski with an infant strapped to your sternum.



By the way, the first picture is of our very first duck egg. Our ducks started laying eggs this week! Duck eggs taste goooooood.

Violet's debut on the blogosphere

So there I was sitting at the computer with a Jack and Coke, and a Violet, getting ready to update the blog and Violet decides that she needs to express herself. Er, um... not like that kind of express herself, I mean like this:

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So just like that, Violet is online. Her first blog entry! It's her first typing - nay, her first computing - adventure! Arrg, her posts are at least as well researched as this guy's.

Shhh, don't disturb her while she's in the creative zone.

While we were busy blogging about the effect of the new economic stimulus package on minimum wage workers (that was Violet's central thesis) Joanna was busy making bread using flour made from Merlot grape seeds.

Mmmm, tasty.

Just pics

Little One Sock

Happy Friday evening. We're off to visit the Idaho family tomorrow morning, so are trying to wash clothes, pack up, and take care of Violet this evening. Violet is a bit fussy, which is pretty unusual for her. She threw up on Mike a little while ago, but seems to be doing a bit better now.

Earlier today she was playing in her baby jungle gym, and somehow managed to lose a sock. Then the other sock started coming off, and she started using her monkey feet to play with one of the gym arches. Not only are we fascinated by her cute, tiny feet, but we are also fascinated by how simian they are. How can anyone reject the idea that we are distantly related to the great apes when they see this?

Hello to Mike, Part 2

Mike is out of town again, and I thought I'd dedicate yet another post to him. He didn't want to leave this morning when he was playing with Violet, so maybe some pictures will pull him through until he gets home tomorrow evening.

Nothing much new right now, Vi is just getting more and more active and aware. She now watches Trooper with a hawk's eye, she really is interested in him. She even likes to pet him and grab his fur when he is close enough. When she is over at Ellen's (while I am teaching at USU), she likes to stare at one of their cats, Belle. Belle isn't really all that interested in Vi, but if I pet her she'll hold still for a bit.

Here, Violet meets the violet that Mike bought for his office as a nice reminder of his little girl:





If you happened to miss the last blog post, Sunday was Mike's birthday. I made him a cake:





He also got a couple of gifts, although we were out of appropriate wrapping paper. So I did the best I could with what I had:




Here Vi proudly shows off one of her favorite toys:





Vi likes to chew on her fingers and toys:





Happy Wednesday, and Happy Birthday (tomorrow) to Charles Darwin!

Yah! It's Mike's birthday

The kid has been especially cute lately. Check it out.

We celebrated my birthday with a hike. We went up to Tony Grove. It was Violet's first alpine experience. 'Twas a smashing good time!






Here's the kid being playful cute. Check out her monkey feet.


Here's the kid being slobbery cute.


Here's the kid being sleepy cute under the watchful eye of blue dog.


A few days ago it was just too nice not to go for a ride.

New Developments

Not a lot new for us these days, but we know we've gotten behind on the blog and are trying to catch up a bit. First of all are a couple of pictures of our tree in the inversion. Notice that although it is midday, the sun has not come close to showing itself. This is due in part to the fog and in part to the smog. You will also see part of our chicken and duck coop in the background.


Next is Violet sitting in her Bumbo chair. She likes this chair mostly (I think) because it gives her a vastly different perspective on the world. I'll post a video of her playing in it soon. She's getting really good at picking up her toys, moving them around, and getting them into her mouth while sitting in it.


Vi also likes to lick things. Particularly the arm of anyone who's holding her. It took me a few tries to get this picture.



Here's what one of the "tries" came out looking like:


Vi is also doing two new things. First, she started giggling at us when we play. That is really fun for all of us. Second, she started sucking on her tongue. Just this morning I was changing her diaper and wondering what the funny look on her face was all about. Then I realized that she was experimenting with sucking on her tongue. She's been doing it off and on all day now. Fun, fun, fun.

Here's a really bad video of Vi giggling at Mike. The lighting in our house is generally crappy, as are our videography skills. Therefore this is all you get, like it or not.