Tidings, Toys and Tots

Merry Christmas 2009!

We had a wonderful Christmas-Hanukkah season this year, celebrating in Central Oregon.  Tons of family, frost and snow led to a delightful reunion and plenty of lounging around the house watching the little cousins interact.  Q had such fun playing with his 4 1/2 year old cousin Penelope and playing "next to" his exactly the same age cousin Freya.  Christmas seems magical again now that there are little ones getting in on the fun!

We started off with a little hike to try out the new piggy back carrier we got for Quentin.  He seems to enjoy the view from up there!

From Beluga Tales

A visit home to Oregon wouldn't be complete without a nice private visit with Quentin's Great-Grandparents!

The cousins just goofing around.....

Some quality storytime with their Oma....

...and fun winter wonderland time with their Poppy!

Lots of music...

...lots of food....

...lots of family!

We wish everyone a wonderful 2010!

Birds, Belly's, Bad Dogs and Much To Be Grateful For...

I've been a little bad about posting recently, but with the holiday season and a family emergency; I've had good reason.

From Beluga Tales

We had a wonderful family Thanksgiving, with weather warm enough to eat the turkey outdoors. We were all thoroughly enjoying the delicious food when Scott and I suddenly realized neither dog was outside with us. This is most unusual as they are always in whichever part of the house we are, never missing an opportunity to be outside, especially one involving potential falling morsels of food. We looked at each other and instantly knew...

From Beluga Tales

...sure enough, I discovered Willie (the Weimeraner) hovering over a devoured turkey carcass, looking simultaneously guilty and satisfied. I'm sure the little dog had her fair share in the plundering, though she was no where to be found (clearly the smarter of the two). Fortunately no harm or illness has come to either dog, and we have learned an invaluable lesson: If you want turkey leftovers, install 6 foot high kitchen countertops!


Unfortunately we did have a bit of a scare this season, as the Sunday before Thanksgiving was filled with an emergency room visit, followed by an emergency appendectomy for a burst appendix. Scott had been complaining on an off for several weeks about a nagging pain in his lower right abdomen. My pleas for seeking medical help were met with claims of the pain being nothing, certain it would pass. It finally reached a point where it could no longer be ignored, thus the trip to the hospital...and not a moment too soon.


It turns out the appendix had burst over two weeks prior, and had luckily localized in the tissue surrounding the abdomen as opposed to getting into the bloodstream and causing him to become septic. Scott was in the hospital for three days, but came home in time for turkey dinner and is now almost fully recovered. It was scary for a bit there, but we are all doing well now.

From Beluga Tales

I guess our little trip to the ER helped me remember the things I should be grateful for, the things sometimes I tend to take for granted. It is so easy get used to having your husband around all the time, to saying the quick "I love you" at the end of each phone call, to roll your eyes when he still doesn't know where all the dishes go when unloading the dishwasher, to get annoyed when he changes a dirty diaper yet forgets to put the stinky one in the diaper bin. But searching the hospital halls frantically for a nurse to lead you back to pre-op so you can kiss your husband before he goes into emergency surgery helps bring it all back into perspective. He's not perfect, I'm not perfect, but we need each other; I love him and want him around no matter what.


Each day together (even the tough ones) should be celebrated. I want to make a better effort to look past the stinky diaper, to laugh and let go of the fact he still doesn't know where the measuring cups go, relish my partner in life making time to tickle our toddler until he squeals with delight; and to say I love you and pause and remember exactly what those words carry with them.


I am grateful for my family and for my life. Hope you had a happy Thanksgiving!

From Beluga Tales

Happy Halloween!

Last weekend we went to a pumpkin patch.  We thought it would be fun to have a little mini-fall experience with the pumpkins and a petting zoo...

We should have known he'd only be interested in the dogs he could make friends with!

He did take his first steps that weekend and has been getting progressivly more and more daring.  I fear he will be running soon!  Happy Halloween to all!

Celebrating Five!

Five short (and at times, long) years ago today we were married.  I can't believe how the time has gone by.  We both agreed that so much has changed since that day in October, and yet how we are also very much the same two people today that we were then.

We decided to celebrate with an adventurous dining experience.  After enlisting the aide of Grammy and Grumpy to babysit we headed out for Posh, an improvisational restaurant.

How It Works:
When you arrive they hand you a sheet of paper that allows you to choose how many courses you would like to eat (anywhere from 4 to 7 - you can also choose limitless).  You also have a list of proteins available for the night and you can cross off any you wish not to receive.  Some of the more adventurous that were on our list last night were frog legs, veal cheeks and veal sweetbreads.  Then you indicate at what temperature you perfer your meat to be cooked at or if you will eat anything raw and also if you have any allergies or dislikes.  You turn this in and the chef then prepares a menu just for you.

It was so much fun guessing what kind of food was coming out next for us, and we got to try such a variety of things because even though our lists we turned in were almost identical, Scott and I were both served entirely different courses almost every time.

Our dining experience looked like this:
            Alli                         Scott
1st Course: Pumpkin Soup                 Pumpkin Soup
2nd Course: Endive Salad w/ Pumpkin      Red Leaf Lettuce Salad
            seeds and a Gooseberry       w/ walnuts, smoked apple
                                         and dried mango
3rd Course: Oysters on the half shell    Tuna sashimi w/ coconut
            w/ ginger                    gelatin strips
4th Course: Sweet Foie Gras served w/    Sweet Foie Gras served
            cinnamon sauce, spun sugar   w/ cinnamon sauce, spun
            and fresh berries            sugar and fresh berries
5th Course: Frog legs and potatoes in a  Rabbit atop a parmesean
            garlic shallot sauce         crusted roasted tomato
6th Course: Veal cheeks w/broccoli       Veal sweetbreads served
                                         w/ baby carrots
7th Course: Honey sponge crepe wrapped   Flourless chocolate cake
            around marigold infused      topped with raspberry
            cream with spun sugar        sorbet

Scott enjoying his pumpkin soup

Me before tasting the decadent foie gras

Scott making sure no portion of frog legs goes to waste

Sweet sweets....

Everything was delicious and the whole experience was so unique and interesting!  Something we must do again!

The last five years have been quite an adventure.  Here's to five more, and then five more after that, and so on.  Love ya beluga!

Comrades, Colorado and Commitments

This past weekend I headed up to beautiful Ouray, Colorado to witness my dear friend Lauren's nuptials.  The bride and groom chose a stunning location for their ceremony (graciously provided by the groom's grandparents) and the gorgeous bride even graced us with her vocal talents by singing a special song for her groom.  It ended up being a mini-reunion for me with some of my college friends and my first experience of being away from my little babe for the night.

It was so wonderful to catch up with old friends and to be there as one friend begins her marriage.  Congratulations Lauren and Ian!  I wish you both all the love in the world.

From Beluga Tales

The couple did such a wonderful job of incorporating elements of the rugged and natural beauty of Colorado into thier wedding.  The groom actually made the flower centerpieces by hollowing out a felled aspen trunk.  Aspens branches and leaves were scattered throughout both ceremony and reception site and the simple wildflowers seemed to be a perfect accent.  Even the favors were homemade Colorado peach perserves by Tamra and Jaime!  Everything about the wedding radiated with who the couple is and what they enjoy.

From Beluga Tales From Beluga Tales

Catching up with old friends was wonderful as well.  I love seeing all the different directions our lives have taken us, and maybe even living vicariously through some of the more interesting adventures each fabulous lady has had.  It is nice that we all haven't grown too far apart on our own paths.

From Beluga Tales

Being a part of someone's milestone event causes me to reflect on the major events I've had in my own life.  I can't believe I will be celebrating my 5th anniversary in a few short weeks.  Somehow it seems like only yesterday and like a lifetime just the same.  Marriage is work; there is no doubt about it.  But I think it is extremely rewarding.  Getting married, tying the knot, making the big commitment; they make it sound like it is something that will weigh you down.  But I believe that knowing you have that someone to weather the storms with you (even when they are the storm themselves sometimes) can feel liberating.  That big crazy world, the scary unknown of the future seems more manageable, or maybe I feel braver for tackling it, knowing I have that partner by my side.

To Lauren and Ian as they begin this new journey; I wish you two smooth sailing, though I know it will be rough at times.  But take heart knowing you can chart a navigable path together and that special someone who is with you every step of the way.  And with a jumping off point in as beautiful a place as this.....I'd say you have no where to go but up!  Love you guys!

From Beluga Tales

Friends (Fun and Furry)

This week we said farewell to some dear friends who are starting fresh in Wyoming.  They will be missed dearly, we made promises (we will keep) to keep in touch, and we hope to make a trip to visit them once they get settled in their new lives.  Sometimes the idea of starting fresh in a new place sounds so appealing.  I love the friends we have made here, but something about a clean slate and no initial relationships besides your family sounds like the perfect recipe for reinventing yourself and bringing you closer.  Maybe one day....

In the mean time, I'll continue to appreciate the fantastic friends we do have here.  We had a little impromptu B-B-Q for our departing friends, and little Q enjoyed playing with some similar sized beings....



Z and Q having a laugh...

From Beluga Tales

The adorable baby Natalie we will be missing...

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Little Q is getting so close to walking on his own.  In the mean time he loves to bend at the knees (his version of dancing) while laughing hysterically.

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Q and Z enjoying a little playtime outside (it is finally cool enough in the evenings here for such activities).

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Quentin has recently discovered the doggie door and thinks it is so much fun, especially when the doggies go in and out of it.

From Beluga Tales

And why wouldn't he, when he's got friends like this he can just hang out with....

From Beluga Tales

L'Shanah Tovah (For A Good Year)

Happy Belated Rosh HaShanah! I think this is one of my favorite of the Jewish holidays we celebrate. Fall is my favorite season and so it only feels right that the Jewish New Year kicks off the fall season. I love that it is about new beginnings, making amends, setting goals, and for us; coming together as a family. 


In our "inter-cultural" household it mostly comes down to me to celebrate holidays on either side of our upbringings. I'm fully aware that we don't follow what might be considered a more "traditional" Jewish home's rituals for this and other holidays, but as a result of our own family blending, we have begun to create our own unique versions for celebration. We eat sweet foods, I bake a traditional challah and we perform a version of Tashlich. Our Tashlich involves taking a nice family walk to a body of water (we are a little limited in Phoenix, so we walk to the canal), we toss breadcrumbs into the water (hopefully eaten by the fish) which is symbolic of letting go of the past years wrongs and then we make plans and goals for the year to come.


I think it is a lovely holiday and I feel fortunate to have married into a Jewish family, thus increasing my awareness of other cultures and traditions (in addition to giving me more reason for holiday celebrations!).


Apples dominate our Rosh HaShanah celebration in hopes of wishing all a "sweet" new year.

Beluga Tales

I love this beautiful challah cover my sweet husband got for me one year.  Pomegranates are also significant for this holiday season as the many seeds the fruit carries is symbolic of the many mitzvahs (good deeds) one aims to perform throughout the coming year.

From Beluga Tales

But with a challah as beautiful as this (if I do say so myself), why would anyone want to cover it up!?!

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Fall season would not be complete without a little father-son college football bonding time.  Q cheered on his daddy's Wildcats by taking a nap, but at least he was dressed the part.

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The most important part of any holiday (for me at least), is the celebration and appreciation of being together as a family.

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Some tasty sweets to round out our holiday meal.  On the right are these new strudel bites I made for the first time.  They turned out okay, but I think I need to play around with the recipe to improve on them.

From Beluga Tales

May you all have a safe, healthy and beautiful new year!

It's A Jungle Out There!

Beluga Tales

For the month of September the Phoenix Zoo is offering 1 FREE Adult admission when you show your Fry's Grocery V.I.P. Card.  Go see all the animals and get wet at the splash pads.  With the summer high temps hovering around (only) 100 degrees now, it is just barely tolerable to be outside.

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We braved the heat and all the other families yesterday for our first trip to the zoo.  Q had a great time, and it turned out to be a beautiful morning for checking out the real life version of all our animal friends we read about in our books. 

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Quentin only caught sight of the really big animals, and even then only when they were moving around.  He did think watching the giraffes eat from the 'bird's nest' view was pretty neat though!

Veggie Rice Balls

My very independent eater pushes the spoon away when I try to feed him.  So I was having a bit of trouble getting him his daily dose of veggies.  Until I came up 'veggie rice balls'. 

They don't look pretty, but they do the trick.

First I steam and then puree either fresh or frozen veggies.  Then I freeze in my little food ice-cube trays to be used for later.  Defrost overnight in the fridge, or in the microwave.  Then stir in rice cereal until the mixture gets really thick and pasty.  For 2 frozen cubes worth, I probably use anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 cup of rice cereal.

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Once the mixture is thick enough I hand roll it into little bite sized balls.  These ones are a mixture of peas, carrots and corn.

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Perfect size for little determined fingers....

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...and perfect size for happy little mouths!

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