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...

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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.

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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

It's A Jungle Out There!

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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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Our Cupcake Turns One!

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I can't believe that one year ago today our lives were forever changed. The addition of our beautiful baby boy has seemingly improved nearly all aspects of our day to day existence. Sure we get less sleep than we used to, but 6 am doesn't seem as evil an hour as it had been pre-baby, and nights out with friends have just been replaced with early evenings at home with the three of us. We are a family now and there is a different kind of love that comes with that title.

It is amazing to watch this tiny human being grow and learn and explore the world around him. I love that the simplest of errands turns into something new as he points out the little things I would normally overlook; the balloons being blown up by the florist at the grocery store, the man across the street mowing his lawn as we go for a walk, the trees swaying in the breeze as we hang up the laundry. Life with children is enhanced in the most beautiful of ways.

To celebrate this wonderful milestone, we invited friends and family of all ages over. Here was the result!

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Aunt Melissa and Uncle Dmitry flew in as a special surprise treat from California for their favorite nephew!

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It is so wonderful to be surrounded by the friends and family you love on special days like this!  Here is Matt and baby Charlotte...

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Sweet baby Aubrey...

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Baby Natalie and her lovely mommy Holly....

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Miss Kaia enjoying a bite to eat....

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The birthday boy thought the 'Happy Birthday' song was loads of fun.....

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...but he was a little heisitant when it came to the birthday cupcakes.....

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...deciding it was best if mom tried it first...

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...and then daddy.

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Once he determined they were okay to eat....

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...he was eager to go back for more!

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After all the wonderful and generous gifts were opened, it was still the balloons he would not let go of.

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Happy Birthday Cupcake!  You make our delicious lives that much sweeter!

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Red, red, wine

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Mmmmmm....beautiful Southern Arizona, cool weather, dogs roaming free, and our favorite pastime....wine tasting!  Scott really wanted to get out of town for a while, so we took a belated birthday trip down south where we had no blackberry coverage and no 105 degree weather!  It was so nice and relaxing and got us scheming (as we usually do) about how we could sell everything we own, buy a vineyard and create our own magical masterpieces in a bottle.

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Mitch and Krystal provided wonderful company for us, not to mention two extra sets of hands to help with the Q-bug. 

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The place we stayed at was a birder's paradise.  So many hummingbirds and Mexican Jays constantly buzzing around.  We were continually filling the birdfeeders.  At night the bats would come out in droves and steal the hummingbirds sugarwater.  It was quite a sight! 

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Overall, our escape to the countryside helped refill our energy levels (as well as our wine fridge). 

Happy Birthday Husband

Lots of well wishes for my wonderful husband on his birthday.  I think you are an amazing father, and so does your son; as witnessed by his squeals of delight when who should appear 'round the side of the crib to rescue him from his morning wakeful loneliness....but his Daddy!

Thank you for being the father and husband we need, for giving everything of yourself to provide such a wonderful life for us, for making us smile, for loving us, for making our family complete.  We love you to the ends of the earth and back!  Happy Birthday!