Caught.

I walked out to the car today to grab my cell phone charger and some guys wearing walking by with a group of kids. I smiled and said hello and they smiled and said hi back. It was only when I got inside the house that I realized: they were probably smiling because they just saw the most stereotypical hippie evar... I was wearing a head scarf and those wide cotton culottes that were popular with Southern college girls about 6 years ago, and I had a baby strapped to me with a ring sling. Luckily they couldn't see me being vegan.

Totally caught being a hippie.

Have baby, will travel.

As a new Mama, I've been looking for things to do. I have found that my little guy travels well (we run a lot of errands), and no one likes being stuck in the house all the time, even a homebody. :-) There is no end to the activities available to us in the DC metro area, but it's hard to find them all in one spot. It gets a little frustrating. Since I'm still not sure where I'm going with this blog, I decided I might as well put up some of the local haps for any local Mamas who are wanting a little excursion. I'll try to post them as often as I find them!

First up: the International Babywearing Conference. This conference takes place at Catholic University in DC from June 29 through July 2. There is a free public day and green festival on Saturday, June 30th. It's hosted by the Beltway Babywearers group. I've been to one of their meetings and they are a friendly and helpful bunch. If you have ever wanted to try out a carrier, this is the event for you! Lots of information, lots of vendors, lots of friendly people ready, willing and able to help you. Plus, lots of cute babies! I'm planning on going with my little guy, and hoping to score a mei tai carrier while we're there. He's starting to outgrow the moby, and it's a little warm for it anyway (N.B. I loved, LOVED the moby. I'm super sad that it's too warm for one. We might try to find a woven wrap instead - similar to a moby but more breathable, less stretchy fabric). We love our Beco carrier, but we need more than one, especially since we don't have a stroller yet!

Hope to see you there!

Want, want, want!

As many of you know, we don't own a stroller. We figured we'd get one eventually, but just haven't really needed it. We love strapping baby guy into the carrier. But then I saw this:

http://www.shop4moms.com/origami/

It is crazy expensive and I. Want. It.

Meatless Monday: Summer soup.

I love this soup. It came to me in a roundabout way. I read about it on a friend's blog, looked it up on Google, found the recipe in the MIT online paper, and fell fast in love. To me, this is the perfect summer soup. Lots of yummy veggies, citrus, served cold. It packs a big flavor punch. I can eat it by the gallon, but it's a little strong for Allen to have as more than a side dish. In my version, I omit the sugar, use OJ from a carton and omit the mushrooms (I refuse to eat raw mushrooms). I also tend to use cherry or grape tomatoes sliced in half and omit the cilantro. Hmm... I guess my version uses this as a guideline, huh? :-) At any rate, it's delicious. We have it as a starting course when we have sandwiches. Pure deliciousness.

Chilled Avocado Citrus Soup from Nadsa de Monteiro’s The Elephant Walk

4 Servings

1 small onion, chopped

1 tbsp salt

1 quart orange juice, freshly squeezed

1 cup lime juice, freshly squeezed

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp garlic, chopped

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 avocados, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

2/3 cup button mushrooms, sliced 1/4 inch thick

2 cups plum tomatoes, diced without pulp

1 tbsp cilantro, chopped

Cover the chopped onion with 1 tbsp salt for 20 to 30 minutes. Rinse the salt completely off the onion, then drain and squeeze off excess water.

Mix remaining salt, black pepper, orange juice, lime juice, garlic, and sugar. Add olive oil and mix well. Add the diced avocados, mushrooms, tomatoes, and onion. Stir gently to mix. Let chill one hour before serving.

Directly before serving, add 1 tbsp cilantro to soup and stir to mix.

Original recipe posted here:
http://tech.mit.edu/V129/N26/elephant/recipe.html

Apropos of nothing...

I want all the shoes:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/uku2

So much for social events.

Call me naive, but I assumed we would be able to maintain some of our social outings with a baby in tow. I'm not talking opera at the Kennedy Center or anything, but family oriented events shouldn't be difficult. Butterbean travels well and there is a lot happening in the area. Thus far, our outings that involve other families with babies have gone well. Birthday parties, baptisms, coffee and lunch dates. But a few others... Well, disastrous just about covers it.

Our first family adventure was to a free outdoor showing of Kung Fu Panda 2 at the National Harbor. We got there early, got good seats, got gourmet popcorn. The movie started late, they blared the sound so loud that almost everyone in the audience had to complain before they turned it down. They stopped the movie 5 minutes in for fireworks that went off at the other end of the harbor. Then a storm blew in, apparently unexpectedly, and everyone leaving the square was chaos. We had to wait 30 minutes just to pay for parking, another 30 to get out of the garage, and by then they were just waving people through without having to pay. It was such a disaster that I actually emailed their PR people about it. The good news is that they responded promptly and positively and sent us some free parking passes. But I don't know if we'll go back.

Fast forward to today, when I was about to buy tickets for a Wolftrap performance. They are showing The Wizard of Oz, with the National Symphony Orchestra playing the score. Allen and I went to something similar a few years ago when they played Lord of the Rings. It's a nice time - you can bring a picnic, they have a spacious lawn, and the nights are warm. As I was about to purchase tickets, I discovered that everyone, including children, regardless of age, has to have a ticket. So instead of paying $40 for Allen and I to go and have a picnic and listen to some music on a nice lawn, we have to pay $60 because we are bringing our 3 month old son with us. And they don't offer discounted tickets for children. Really? I'm actually kind of mad at them about this. It's ridiculous to pay a full price ticket for an infant. He's certainly not watching the movie, or listening to the music. He'll be sleeping! And given the amount of money they spend on advertising and the hit the arts have taken in the recession, you'd think they'd rather have our $40 than for us to not go at all because of their stupid ticketing policies and prices. If he was five, I'd understand. But really? A 3 month old has to have a full priced ticket? So family outing number two is a failure before it even got off the ground. And I was actually planning to go to a few of their performances this year.

So it's back to the drawing board. Luckily there are lots of free museums and such in the city. Hopefully our next family outing won't end up as a cautionary tale. ;-)

Hilarious if you are a knitter...

Overheard in my local yarn shop:

30s-ish mom to grandma: They have "sport" yarn here. I think that would be the best for Billy. Something hardwearing that will last him a while. Something rugged.

I had to bite my lip.

Ugh. I am so over this.

I am grossed out by hair that is not attached to my head. So I was absolutely loving not shedding any hair for my entire pregnancy. And it's even worse to be losing it in handfuls now after not losing any for most of the last 12 months. I pull out fistfuls in the shower and fistfuls when I comb my hair. And the spend the rest of the day pulling hairs off my clothes, out of Butterbean's mouth and obsessing about whether any have gotten into my food. (FYI: If it does, I refuse to eat it.)

At this point, I'd prefer baldness. (Though I have no bald spots or anything like that.) When will it end?!