tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67395782998842642732024-03-19T17:04:16.803-04:00Go Team FriedmanErinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.comBlogger142125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-88411580780201529442012-09-03T22:33:00.004-04:002012-09-03T22:33:58.493-04:002 months oldIt seems impossible that Austin has already been with us for two months. He has clearly been focusing on growing; he now is 24.75" long and weighs 13 lb 14 oz, which are both above 90th percentile. We were fortunate enough to spend the summer home as a family of four, and we spent most of our time making sure to get out of the house to let Gabe play. Austin was kind enough to be completely laid back and indulge us with our random outings. <br />
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Some other highlights are captured in the photos below. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0VuRh0RPK8tz-7C20RWNnpZTd5v7YIYXrx17u9u-0X5CH_CpzB8RQUl2vPm5MH9i07hiyf4n8gACfhkvpjuakZWdZvkk74RK-boCvXnZKTrELBPLDtXDILGuSMKYWbW1EFH2mvLHtMHo/s1600/IMG_2448.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0VuRh0RPK8tz-7C20RWNnpZTd5v7YIYXrx17u9u-0X5CH_CpzB8RQUl2vPm5MH9i07hiyf4n8gACfhkvpjuakZWdZvkk74RK-boCvXnZKTrELBPLDtXDILGuSMKYWbW1EFH2mvLHtMHo/s320/IMG_2448.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe and Austin in their guitar shirts. Gabe is into matching clothes with his bro.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-vLA0_kTAhjXDBTCmoWhgsgAHHp_ZILcsyl_JFIJ7RTG2leKrKEBy58JAcufm_JyjhE4yAaCwozvfE-1FGmaErz-rDZ1pRokOWR9vGqY6j3IIlxRkq_M4jCbBqTKOq2wD4rSL-nyKiig/s1600/DSC_4547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-vLA0_kTAhjXDBTCmoWhgsgAHHp_ZILcsyl_JFIJ7RTG2leKrKEBy58JAcufm_JyjhE4yAaCwozvfE-1FGmaErz-rDZ1pRokOWR9vGqY6j3IIlxRkq_M4jCbBqTKOq2wD4rSL-nyKiig/s320/DSC_4547.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thoughtful...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWwyxf0e8JPdSuLpsvjIWeU2GM3U4UHdG6jbiqi7SmCHJ6AGVAFo11hIQaZ6HhZt8r2eVL4Y8jmMbroVx_cGZeB7agyWMzIPr4Z9P9wvDFBAe2nuRZYFEFowZ-jDHvgq7eHdtqgedVcxU/s1600/DSC_4592.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWwyxf0e8JPdSuLpsvjIWeU2GM3U4UHdG6jbiqi7SmCHJ6AGVAFo11hIQaZ6HhZt8r2eVL4Y8jmMbroVx_cGZeB7agyWMzIPr4Z9P9wvDFBAe2nuRZYFEFowZ-jDHvgq7eHdtqgedVcxU/s320/DSC_4592.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cousins, including 3 new boy cousins who are less than 6 months old!</td></tr>
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<br />Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-90513924475441851662012-08-07T22:01:00.003-04:002012-08-24T20:54:40.837-04:00Video update<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="169" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/46596369?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="300"></iframe> <a href="http://vimeo.com/46596369">Austin the chatterbox</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/goteamfriedman">Team Friedman</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="169" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/46262490?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="300"></iframe> <a href="http://vimeo.com/46262490">Austin and Kermit</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/goteamfriedman">Team Friedman</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-37409167466293754602012-08-07T21:59:00.000-04:002012-08-07T21:59:16.844-04:00Gabe writingWhile we weren't watching, Gabe apparently taught himself to write. Occasionally he'll ask to draw on our whiteboard. Usually he just scribbles. This time, however, he announced that he was going to write "mommy", and he proceeded to produce this:<div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvKVovQlIJdsma44W2Ev17HJkxe3tVm1Om1pvUCUvomZrmXhB2VPEcRsTiv45mIeHE3-7DkD4vlYct5piIkYHeBhf_TIKZNfksDDqY4yanHwI-7s6SGP_aeIjh6CW60gORU7osNJquK94/s1600/DSC_4493.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvKVovQlIJdsma44W2Ev17HJkxe3tVm1Om1pvUCUvomZrmXhB2VPEcRsTiv45mIeHE3-7DkD4vlYct5piIkYHeBhf_TIKZNfksDDqY4yanHwI-7s6SGP_aeIjh6CW60gORU7osNJquK94/s320/DSC_4493.JPG" width="212" /></a></div>
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He repeated the performance several times for the cameras. Here is a video of the process. </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" frameborder="0" height="529" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/46183483?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" width="300"></iframe> <a href="http://vimeo.com/46183483">gabe writing</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/goteamfriedman">Team Friedman</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-74040008164732584532012-08-07T21:53:00.006-04:002012-09-03T22:25:18.494-04:00Austin: month 1I cannot believe that my baby boy is already 6 weeks old! The first month of Austin's life absolutely flew by. Grandma and Grandpa were here to help for the first two weeks, and Bubbie and Papa were here after they left. Thanks to all of our parents, we failed to starve for the first few weeks, and Gabe was constantly entertained :) We were able to just relax and introduce our son to all of our family members. We also enjoyed visits from Adam & Shanice and a surprise visit from Rick. <br />
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After the first three weeks, we were on our own. Luckily, we are both home for the summer, so we spent our days entertaining Gabe (parks, story times, bike rides, shopping, etc.) and relaxing with Austin. In the short time that remained, Mike took 3 summer school classes for his Masters program, and we've mostly managed to keep up with the cooking and cleaning. <br />
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Some highlights from month one: two birthday parties (Jaxon's first and Mia's third), gaming with Team B, and visits from friends. We also celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary by taking the boys to the airport park, airport, Old Mc Donald's (Gabe's name for his favorite restaurant), and Rita's.<br />
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I've included a selection of photos from the first month. The full albums are online <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/100356118711686935689/20120701?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCLiTgo6e9K2vxQE&feat=directlink">here</a> and <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/100356118711686935689/20120731?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCPm8zqubzfvkeQ&feat=directlink">here</a> (you'll have to log in with google plus and be friends with Mike to view them, though).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO3cSHLetvhe3cAmaYTH6j1mJnVOeRdHmWkfU-MM0xw8TTtktPaQKlZsADCWD3oz9nK-ONNyZADUxRx8-5UFSedXHefQPahZAp9hjgAuMo2Gu4OeRWTmcz-xhs7-sFonRphLYg8r-4Hc0/s1600/DSC_4408.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO3cSHLetvhe3cAmaYTH6j1mJnVOeRdHmWkfU-MM0xw8TTtktPaQKlZsADCWD3oz9nK-ONNyZADUxRx8-5UFSedXHefQPahZAp9hjgAuMo2Gu4OeRWTmcz-xhs7-sFonRphLYg8r-4Hc0/s320/DSC_4408.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Family kiss after Austin's first sponge bath</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuc5qWydq1ne4L9QdyO-quxsD1EO2PyRkWFUn_NQM3oF7K27Mubw47wUTk1GuRrwddAt4FQuFHbKmYhOIpb_BXmOowG9wIYz2xbAtmw0M5eZxoYrrl8nX4oowRKd-7c3eajgzL4X5HXmQ/s1600/DSC_4383.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuc5qWydq1ne4L9QdyO-quxsD1EO2PyRkWFUn_NQM3oF7K27Mubw47wUTk1GuRrwddAt4FQuFHbKmYhOIpb_BXmOowG9wIYz2xbAtmw0M5eZxoYrrl8nX4oowRKd-7c3eajgzL4X5HXmQ/s320/DSC_4383.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Relaxing in the blanket that Susie made</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWjnIz9NKZ00yjHshqdTiMjy4PC4jwW-SMMdqyOhwKsB8Cghee9y0wvvhP2KAscwOW5GFhiI_TqdfZVcu5QmwRyIXdkiBN1g3MqPoYxUQs4tbwcBEm_0iWc4VQgL0ObVvRjod6gj-Zkbw/s1600/DSC_4444.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWjnIz9NKZ00yjHshqdTiMjy4PC4jwW-SMMdqyOhwKsB8Cghee9y0wvvhP2KAscwOW5GFhiI_TqdfZVcu5QmwRyIXdkiBN1g3MqPoYxUQs4tbwcBEm_0iWc4VQgL0ObVvRjod6gj-Zkbw/s320/DSC_4444.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stretching out</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe and Austin with Grandma and Grandpa</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hoosier love</td></tr>
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<br />Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-66836973172009032892012-07-23T18:26:00.000-04:002012-07-23T18:26:09.451-04:00Austin Noah FriedmanWe've been so busy enjoying life as a family of four that I forgot to post about Austin's birth! We welcomed baby Austin on Wednesday 20 June 2012 at 9:07am. He clocked in at 8 lb 10 oz and 21.25" long.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg329IeiHphr-20DJ4YlvgDOStc8kynnKa9C6c0qsyVwpq27q2Phge1NHJ6GmIruYN-OCM_zJ9sMmYUWcvxG-te1nZm1inLdbytXt9i9X7j8-t6xjk1LXmgURPrEo9P8JCpzijI4ANiY3A/s1600/Austin.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg329IeiHphr-20DJ4YlvgDOStc8kynnKa9C6c0qsyVwpq27q2Phge1NHJ6GmIruYN-OCM_zJ9sMmYUWcvxG-te1nZm1inLdbytXt9i9X7j8-t6xjk1LXmgURPrEo9P8JCpzijI4ANiY3A/s320/Austin.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Austin Noah Friedman, minutes after birth</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;">Austin is apparently going to be our rebellious child. We had a C-section scheduled and ready to go on June 25, but at 38.5 weeks, Austin decided not to wait any longer. I ended up laboring for about 9 hours before he was born - we knew they would do the surgery as soon as we arrived at the hospital, but my parents hadn't arrived yet (they drove all day Wednesday), and we knew that taking Gabe to Team B at 3am would be disruptive to everyone. I toughed it out until 6am and then it was go time. As soon as we got to the hospital (around 7:30), everyone assembled as quickly as possible (apparently Wed morning is busy - all of the docs had to be pulled out of meetings!). Once we got to the OR, things went quickly, and before I knew it, we were in recovery bonding with Austin. After we got settled into our room, Sara brought Gabe up to visit, and he got to be the first one to hold Austin.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0jwEOIJJHf1El8JtDqlzMBcwDatKYZYskN2K_3A-wfNiCEXXKpsIBar5Q4U8A56RLuxHlcsHFLIGZlKum8rqpdum1hJuX3yUaDI8jYQTnlPqfcXKe7BS19WhyqdStGIimqgK7mJgNC8I/s1600/Austin-Gabe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0jwEOIJJHf1El8JtDqlzMBcwDatKYZYskN2K_3A-wfNiCEXXKpsIBar5Q4U8A56RLuxHlcsHFLIGZlKum8rqpdum1hJuX3yUaDI8jYQTnlPqfcXKe7BS19WhyqdStGIimqgK7mJgNC8I/s320/Austin-Gabe.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brothers!</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;">The rest of our stay was kind of a blur - my parents arrived that evening and came to visit twice - once en route from Indy, and again once they had picked up Gabe. Gabe was very good and handled the change quite well (in addition to being a big brother, this was his first night away from Mommy!) - he, Grandma, and Grandpa visited twice on Thursday, and when they came to visit Friday morning, they brought us back home with them. Apparently an evening full of births (16+ at UNC on Thursday night!) does wonders for your ability to be discharged after 48 hours :) Austin is an awesome baby - he looks so much like Gabe did at that age, and he's just as easy (if not easier!) - he eats and sleeps well, rarely cries, and is very happy. We definitely won the baby lottery!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;">I'll post more stories of our first month home and a bunch of photos soon.</span>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-86158098473853908332012-05-10T14:23:00.000-04:002012-05-10T14:23:29.185-04:00Gabe readingGabe really enjoys to read, and he has many books (or portions thereof) memorized; however, we were very surprised to discover that he knows all of the words to "Berenstain Bears: New Baby". It's not a short book! Here is a video of him "reading" it to us.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/xsi7W3ijmug?rel=0" width="560"></iframe>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-58392685171189655932012-05-09T21:37:00.000-04:002012-05-09T00:01:41.920-04:00Gabriel 3.0!Our baby boy celebrated his third birthday on Sunday. I'm still in disbelief. We had a great day celebrating, which wrapped up a special pre-birthday week (including two trips for sorbet at ice cream stores). After learning our lesson last year (G begged for his cake all day long), Gabe and I baked cupcakes and ate them for breakfast. We also opened presents in the morning so that he could get some good play time in. He managed to spend some time with everything - a bike, a robot puzzle, finger paints, and a swingset (thanks everyone!!). <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8kW419DOtsnVxMIHxQxkeU-HmyzCS_1qDjHrZh1EJ66tyxREnTaniwNun2lVu5DE1Sop2vOWwHu6AZd5O5V3cvvkcU-FY9kO2IQWyQeNP2tL2mUroqLvCIulruHYtA5pLlQzrx1mOEvw/s640/blogger-image--1528630708.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8kW419DOtsnVxMIHxQxkeU-HmyzCS_1qDjHrZh1EJ66tyxREnTaniwNun2lVu5DE1Sop2vOWwHu6AZd5O5V3cvvkcU-FY9kO2IQWyQeNP2tL2mUroqLvCIulruHYtA5pLlQzrx1mOEvw/s320/blogger-image--1528630708.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-2724980166594344872012-05-07T15:39:00.001-04:002012-05-07T15:50:12.551-04:0032 weeksI've been horrible at blogging anything about this pregnancy. I will blame it on first- and second-trimester sickness and the craziness that is being pregnant, working full-time, parenting a toddler, and trying (failing) to sell a house. The third trimester has been relatively kind to me. However, this kid is a kicker! It's nice to know that he is ok, but I wish he would take a break occasionally and let me rest! <br />
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Last weekend we took Gabe to a sibling maternity tour at UNC so he could see where we would be staying when his brother is born. He got to dress up like a doctor and take care of a baby doll, which he then carried throughout the tour. The highlight? Elevators! <br />
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I am wrapping up my semesters teaching at UNC and Peace and transitioning into full-time editing until the fall semester. Mike is gearing up his students for AP tests; their school doesn't end until mid-June. In other news, we got antsy and pulled our house off the market. We decided that it was more important to start settling in somewhere, even if it was in a small space. We are almost finished - we moved Gabe's room (the boys will share one), threw out a bunch of stuff, and are working on making a hybrid play/guest room. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHG8O3VTSd_K8rq2uA1-pEID0j0YuR9SatS3MrHiZzRH_q_ARAocyOQg9_0CffcrN1zE2AZLoUsR_ZfJt_TeoK7ZQosUivbh_h3Oe7tCQU1fKaofF8Jli55iAMCSpvsAA4V_o0zuvBnc/s640/blogger-image-328027631.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHG8O3VTSd_K8rq2uA1-pEID0j0YuR9SatS3MrHiZzRH_q_ARAocyOQg9_0CffcrN1zE2AZLoUsR_ZfJt_TeoK7ZQosUivbh_h3Oe7tCQU1fKaofF8Jli55iAMCSpvsAA4V_o0zuvBnc/s320/blogger-image-328027631.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKVUqhHFP_8mCVY0H-Mu8JjVL0vwu62XN1rSuWU5qndJCJ4hlDOCuj45re0chEgui-CH2-NvCUDjUuZaOLgntf8R6N6VRCfWzK6yYhZ8MtfaxiauInp3iRVsDMqVako2ENW_cxLb-Nb9I/s640/blogger-image-1978817161.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKVUqhHFP_8mCVY0H-Mu8JjVL0vwu62XN1rSuWU5qndJCJ4hlDOCuj45re0chEgui-CH2-NvCUDjUuZaOLgntf8R6N6VRCfWzK6yYhZ8MtfaxiauInp3iRVsDMqVako2ENW_cxLb-Nb9I/s320/blogger-image-1978817161.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-74688001578728196932012-02-12T16:44:00.001-05:002012-02-12T16:44:46.995-05:00Recap: Fall 2011 in photosI finally got around to downloading photos from the camera (and deleting all of the photos of the floor that Gabe took), so now I get to give you a quick recap of highlights from Oct-Dec. You can find the whole album on Google+.<div>
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October 2011:<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu7KY_w4YswpC0whdjy70jW420FuaCOQcUBGfgf0hy0uweANLK4VBABm4JszSt9_7Z3vXJnEMc8ZbME8VVC_CPWX57XMuDDc3Ixqcq0QyGF7i0D0ebKXvOSuRhDcJqm2II5HwusIzxr7g/s1600/DSC_3797.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu7KY_w4YswpC0whdjy70jW420FuaCOQcUBGfgf0hy0uweANLK4VBABm4JszSt9_7Z3vXJnEMc8ZbME8VVC_CPWX57XMuDDc3Ixqcq0QyGF7i0D0ebKXvOSuRhDcJqm2II5HwusIzxr7g/s320/DSC_3797.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bubbie and Papa came to visit. One of the highlights of their trip included taking Gabe to a corn maze. He was more interested in the hay ride than the maze; we did that twice :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXpZO3mOpb1j8Ub1LV9Xm4aEuk4iPLz8ivljMnZbgTUKppEe9edJiOBXPYd1xKjU-aVZ-AxmD2cr8rstTaxRlASjFLTVaFC4EiyZ01AKABQlQ9URcoAb1L9XviJJE-4wARz3HUqovpV84/s1600/DSC_3829.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXpZO3mOpb1j8Ub1LV9Xm4aEuk4iPLz8ivljMnZbgTUKppEe9edJiOBXPYd1xKjU-aVZ-AxmD2cr8rstTaxRlASjFLTVaFC4EiyZ01AKABQlQ9URcoAb1L9XviJJE-4wARz3HUqovpV84/s320/DSC_3829.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Auntie Erica visited for a long weekend. She and Gabe built a LOT of Lego towers, and she got to celebrate Halloween with us at Team B.</span> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsReKejjgR6cs3Gsar82nWqyu9TRd7PXZTFICVDN2s0j-kUnF5OY8Te1rg2xL33YMuia40O_JBfCO-goPuW4DS4JsIBKkrFWgDrRr9DokHaZN49M7QgVsoWj-zx2qdDQqruQ7iQ4OFh34/s1600/DSC_3844.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsReKejjgR6cs3Gsar82nWqyu9TRd7PXZTFICVDN2s0j-kUnF5OY8Te1rg2xL33YMuia40O_JBfCO-goPuW4DS4JsIBKkrFWgDrRr9DokHaZN49M7QgVsoWj-zx2qdDQqruQ7iQ4OFh34/s320/DSC_3844.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Mike got the sewing machine out of storage and made some awesome Harry Potter robes for Halloween. He was adult Harry, and Gabe was Harry's son James. I was going to be adult Ginny, but Halloween beat us to the punch. Maybe next year!</span></span>
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November 2011:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq113iQD_i792bRtQnssfTB0wB5rcwZvd29r1gvX9TeKFrHnu4jIYdpW_lakNkNjePtkrMUA7BIa0nEnQ4qG_13gWQg65uy-peFtVhXhoGrk9pwW1PoJzFCQoE4xo59x7TBTvFgBE14Ds/s1600/DSC_3883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq113iQD_i792bRtQnssfTB0wB5rcwZvd29r1gvX9TeKFrHnu4jIYdpW_lakNkNjePtkrMUA7BIa0nEnQ4qG_13gWQg65uy-peFtVhXhoGrk9pwW1PoJzFCQoE4xo59x7TBTvFgBE14Ds/s320/DSC_3883.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We spent Thanksgiving in Myrtle Beach, SC visiting Uncle Jason, Aunt Jennifer, Cousin Alaina, and Auntie Chanda. Bubbie and Papa also drove up from Dallas. We had a great time eating (of course), playing outside, celebrating my birthday, and going to the bounce house.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: small; text-align: -webkit-auto;">December 2011:</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWaPgswvyvuWq92SMEvHCMtVZRvSqmfVKcNyfOP6m_1AcuS91Fe09QBm6nUM1G7xHWAD3zg8jPVl-rjLYfmQylPY2mQT8IZjEpYav-6j8aiJE2hQSG82a5sUXK11vgzohIjtzb6emlC7Q/s1600/DSC_3940.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWaPgswvyvuWq92SMEvHCMtVZRvSqmfVKcNyfOP6m_1AcuS91Fe09QBm6nUM1G7xHWAD3zg8jPVl-rjLYfmQylPY2mQT8IZjEpYav-6j8aiJE2hQSG82a5sUXK11vgzohIjtzb6emlC7Q/s320/DSC_3940.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Auntie Meg came to visit from Norway (actually on her way back to Norway from Antarctica), and we had a great time hanging out. She also introduced Gabe to the joys of advent calendars!</td></tr>
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</div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-184672392367854142012-02-03T21:53:00.001-05:002012-02-03T21:53:51.582-05:00We're having another baby boy!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6WrZTVn_1fLCy1WqLjs9qcUUHn2CN6SDkKHPzQe9x-uCZnMVQ9tR2wpKlHu_F_hh6ADgzYj0yswwMqpxtG9WC0i8VcID5ZtNomY1D2g-uV-dII_Yab4fy6if9CbX45lThXEVZHkAad_U/s1600/BABY+19WKS_9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6WrZTVn_1fLCy1WqLjs9qcUUHn2CN6SDkKHPzQe9x-uCZnMVQ9tR2wpKlHu_F_hh6ADgzYj0yswwMqpxtG9WC0i8VcID5ZtNomY1D2g-uV-dII_Yab4fy6if9CbX45lThXEVZHkAad_U/s320/BABY+19WKS_9.jpg" width="320" /></a>Gabe would say "I told you so"; he's been telling people "I have a baby brother in mommy's belly." Today we had our big anatomy scan ultrasound and officially found out that we're having another boy. Now we have to come up with a name :) That's proving to be more difficult this time around!<br />
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Everything at the ultrasound checked out wonderfully. It turns out that baby boy 2 also got Gabe's stubborn streak; it took a solid 20 minutes to get the the right view of his head so that the sonographer could finish her measurements. He just wasn't interested in moving out of his cozy spot.<br />
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Twenty weeks down and twenty more to go!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-45203437681866268792011-12-16T20:08:00.000-05:002011-12-16T20:08:14.207-05:00Here we go again<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDMHynFpnSY4jCLY0IE7qGLnhDRn0D_b8DmmrnhKHT7nQS_3LVIX8Eu0NWVfsfhy0bOicz2-8wi5x4A8QcXBxeY2BjLJ7n4i10lcU0l6dNxxuIRlPRp1lSEg3X_9MUOaEzvQYeaEUIxvw/s1600/scan0004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDMHynFpnSY4jCLY0IE7qGLnhDRn0D_b8DmmrnhKHT7nQS_3LVIX8Eu0NWVfsfhy0bOicz2-8wi5x4A8QcXBxeY2BjLJ7n4i10lcU0l6dNxxuIRlPRp1lSEg3X_9MUOaEzvQYeaEUIxvw/s320/scan0004.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby Friedman #2 at 7 weeks</td></tr>
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You may have noticed (by the fact that I just posted about a camping trip in October) that we're a little behind on the blog. There's a reason for that, though. At 12 weeks in, I think it's fairly safe to say that Gabe is going to be a big brother somewhere around June 29. It's been a pretty crazy fall, though - between editing and teaching on my end and teaching a load of new AP classes on Mike's end (and chasing the never ending energy source that is Gabe on both of our ends), we've been pretty exhausted. I've also had a much different pregnancy this time around; things were completely by the book with Gabe, and although everything is on target and progressing normally, the side effects this time around have been a lot more intense. I'm hoping that as the first trimester comes to a close, we can put some of that behind us.<br />
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We went in for an appointment today and got to hear the heartbeat for the first time since our seven-week ultrasound (although as you can see, there's not much to see that early); at 159 bpm, it was a wonderful sound to hear, and it brought me back to the first time we heard Gabe's heartbeat. Gabe, by the way, is very excited about becoming a big brother; I'm not sure that he completely understands the ramifications, but he asks me every day about the baby, gives my belly hugs and kisses, and asks when his new baby will be here. It's super sweet.<br />
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We're all looking forward to a relaxing Christmas break with the family. Next year brings another round of craziness - I'm going to be teaching the 400-student introductory biology course at UNC, Mike has a pile of AP tests to prepare his students for, and we're hoping that once the market picks back up in the spring months, we can finally sell this house and move somewhere bigger in time for us to be a family of four!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-84091569311869090652011-12-13T22:53:00.001-05:002011-12-14T12:37:42.109-05:00Backpacking 2: Raven Rock State Park in October<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEFOr5TC8tLn8MNSLMFyf9nrV4XvBxnvLGMqKu2C0ERIfk8SgROrgk6OAKVfXfnz1PREcOm3DAKI0fDcC6SPpAb26JhTcHif4Dg-OOiBCLciDxtgivsA1S-vZ_t4ov3tFoC46Uq8qoJOM/s640/blogger-image-1169580986.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEFOr5TC8tLn8MNSLMFyf9nrV4XvBxnvLGMqKu2C0ERIfk8SgROrgk6OAKVfXfnz1PREcOm3DAKI0fDcC6SPpAb26JhTcHif4Dg-OOiBCLciDxtgivsA1S-vZ_t4ov3tFoC46Uq8qoJOM/s320/blogger-image-1169580986.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hiking to camp</td></tr>
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We were less conservative for our second backpacking experience. Equipped with <a href="http://gregorypacks.com/products/womens/technical/240/deva-60">better</a> <a href="http://gregorypacks.com/products/mens/technical/17/palisade-80">packs</a>, we again headed off for a cousin adventure to <a href="http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/raro/main.php">Raven Rock State Park.</a> This was a much more traditional experience; the hike to the site was 1.7 mi (via an actual trail and not the flat, wide trail at Falls Lake), and we stayed in the canoe camping site, which had only 6 sites. The end result was a much more primitive (and quiet!) experience. We were right on the Cape Fear River, which is slightly misleading because the bank is so steep, it was a 5-min walk to the actual river. Again, Gabe did really well. He walked somewhere between a half mile and a mile on the way in (which was good considering that we got there after his dinner time), and we got to the site in time to set up camp and start a fire. I was impressed to see Gabe actually devour his dinner (a rarity in our house), but bedtime was not so easy. After we were all settled into our tent, Gabe decided that he wanted to sleep "at home in my own bed right now!". Not an easy feat when you're 1.7 mi from the car and an hour from home beyond that. Luckily, some Thomas videos on the iphone calmed him down, and we all had a good sleep.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJozA-eZFYE-bzPSG8U3mn6D9qp1hHk-viVUbfHDo2v30nyIzVibOSGRD0XBCmSVMTmFE9FOP8S6EnkXUKZqdjWkqr1mQO72wcB6c9NASvH2u0-etzA5ZOpwLLuXk1F4FOGJbL4Dd_Ni4/s640/blogger-image--1636771011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJozA-eZFYE-bzPSG8U3mn6D9qp1hHk-viVUbfHDo2v30nyIzVibOSGRD0XBCmSVMTmFE9FOP8S6EnkXUKZqdjWkqr1mQO72wcB6c9NASvH2u0-etzA5ZOpwLLuXk1F4FOGJbL4Dd_Ni4/s320/blogger-image--1636771011.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Home sweet home</td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Hnxq2mURCLXpNq6vFfopoKVVGHFhTANbN-sEyfj45l738rN1EQlo52ZV_XdoIJHxZkpuHNqw0CXXppM1eXX458ZRCVJDCBn4bbwNokpb_ZSqiSHIc3lUdyea4BkxXleQXyUBmJ7Q6_4/s640/blogger-image-1872339443.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Hnxq2mURCLXpNq6vFfopoKVVGHFhTANbN-sEyfj45l738rN1EQlo52ZV_XdoIJHxZkpuHNqw0CXXppM1eXX458ZRCVJDCBn4bbwNokpb_ZSqiSHIc3lUdyea4BkxXleQXyUBmJ7Q6_4/s320/blogger-image-1872339443.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy and Gabe relaxing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Sunday was a lot of fun. The kids spent some time exploring the site, relaxing with the dads in the hammocks, and playing card games. We had a leisurely breakfast and relaxed until it was time to tear down camp and head home via Raven Rock (you can't not see a namesake!). The actual rocks were on the river bank, which was 150 stairs down from the trail. Gabe (who hadn't been so eager to hike on his own) eagerly trekked down (and back up) all 150 stairs! However, between that, the mile hike to the rock, and the fact that it was past his naptime, he rode the last mile to the car on Mike's shoulders (and fell asleep in the process).<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEBDIgptKTpiJf0sP2RFu87cJtkjoxH_jCANtSRxabVx2SbsH35K4oCHn3z_J1EXMQ5vEl0ojgQ2dL-uyfkjZhSC83-8i5YkuW0roe1w4DEKjhUWtiE7-uVGxF6v7ITSGwDEmpgAtp2ss/s640/blogger-image-376199134.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEBDIgptKTpiJf0sP2RFu87cJtkjoxH_jCANtSRxabVx2SbsH35K4oCHn3z_J1EXMQ5vEl0ojgQ2dL-uyfkjZhSC83-8i5YkuW0roe1w4DEKjhUWtiE7-uVGxF6v7ITSGwDEmpgAtp2ss/s320/blogger-image-376199134.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Exploring the campsite with Eliot</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7MSLYxBZf6bSR66bFUPeR4g39AEanLB3Jy6B4Dth0t-1SjGFYYqbT3rFcTrccSeylaQGpE1x1BuaOij1osYwXyH-tM8-BSUzOlHxCBaoKS33Tqhx6OyWQ5VvE_rMFMMatfm8gjOeBBjw/s640/blogger-image--1166370724.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7MSLYxBZf6bSR66bFUPeR4g39AEanLB3Jy6B4Dth0t-1SjGFYYqbT3rFcTrccSeylaQGpE1x1BuaOij1osYwXyH-tM8-BSUzOlHxCBaoKS33Tqhx6OyWQ5VvE_rMFMMatfm8gjOeBBjw/s320/blogger-image--1166370724.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cape Fear River with Mommy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZXLlla1MfoQD-D3eEVA1afT2BycgXOmYUYGGxmgL5rJ6CTgIFz_JMrssnuMQ7p8d_2PvdFPA8nCl1MlSbPOHGUKFfGx1bthu_-gE9lAcEwzItnGrhdTiPEOAWzTeI2r8N6HLRpn3kqQ/s640/blogger-image-2117894941.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZXLlla1MfoQD-D3eEVA1afT2BycgXOmYUYGGxmgL5rJ6CTgIFz_JMrssnuMQ7p8d_2PvdFPA8nCl1MlSbPOHGUKFfGx1bthu_-gE9lAcEwzItnGrhdTiPEOAWzTeI2r8N6HLRpn3kqQ/s320/blogger-image-2117894941.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rock formations</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxprh78aInt673PgmXxWU9arP00B8WpintGPAKkh_MYjZo6ytctKA8QxJpmY2JdxJYT1yOJPNsnqpSUqat8pqhbN_LMI8aP0LLdSUev_VZzDYCtb3xWXOUd3krJikkTyPrqBpdWk2x9Y/s640/blogger-image--45045776.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxprh78aInt673PgmXxWU9arP00B8WpintGPAKkh_MYjZo6ytctKA8QxJpmY2JdxJYT1yOJPNsnqpSUqat8pqhbN_LMI8aP0LLdSUev_VZzDYCtb3xWXOUd3krJikkTyPrqBpdWk2x9Y/s320/blogger-image--45045776.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hiking back to the car</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">In all, it was a successful trip, and we're excited to try out some new parks in the spring.</span>
</div>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-19176306063937525772011-10-19T14:16:00.002-04:002011-10-19T14:16:51.394-04:00Summer recap: backpacking<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDoX8p_ka5bxoIuDBPMAP1BaV-mefxzW6pmAO1S8y2o-4gJeVuVWGlNrRSUouYFRdzVBcVqTLiJEHgVDDBRh-pRqwSaJEv7_PwuiIvmz49vHYldGxxeKeMHq6Tw8AQlWLCMVueyYeYUk8/s1600/photo+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDoX8p_ka5bxoIuDBPMAP1BaV-mefxzW6pmAO1S8y2o-4gJeVuVWGlNrRSUouYFRdzVBcVqTLiJEHgVDDBRh-pRqwSaJEv7_PwuiIvmz49vHYldGxxeKeMHq6Tw8AQlWLCMVueyYeYUk8/s320/photo+1.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe exploring camp</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
My cousins have been begging us to go camping with them since they moved to NC. I camped fairly frequently as a kid, and Mike was a Boy Scout, but I don't think he's camped much since, and I haven't been since undergrad. Ben is of the opinion (and I can't fault him) that if you're going to camp, you should see some good scenery and not the backs of cars and RVs; therefore, instead of slowly getting our feet wet with some car camping, we dove in with a backpacking trip and a toddler.<br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent;">During the last week of May, we ventured out with Team B for a night of backpacking at </span><a href="http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/fala/pics/shinleaf.pdf" style="background-color: transparent;">Shinleaf </a><span style="background-color: transparent;">at Falls Lake State Park. It was a pretty short hike into the site (somewhere between a quarter and a half mile), but we picked a site close to the lake (and the vault toilet, which was critical with 2 kids under 6). Gabe walked most of the way himself (backpack and all), and we managed to get a fire started and the tents set up before it got dark. We had a short first night; by the time we got the kids to sleep, we just went to sleep ourselves.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent;">After the early night, the kids were up early, so we spent the morning hiking to the lake and relaxing in the hammock. We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast and snack and then packed out before lunch. Gabe barely made it back to the car; I carried him most of the way back, and he was asleep for a late nap before we even left the parking lot. In all, it was a great first experience. We managed to stay tick-free, and Gabe didn't run (too far) away, although he was very interested in going out onto the trail "by myself".</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5AkLGKVL5RWXAp1pfJq0bSWllt4bx7Dm-nfoVzJgcV5RVs0VokVSJZMr8JIM2Ijcebzw2t4hN8SNATQQrxR7P11JjlgIjpl-KsSZ0Mt8B53yJdaQZyGmmGCEvWbCy8Ept8gn3m5PYH0g/s1600/photo+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5AkLGKVL5RWXAp1pfJq0bSWllt4bx7Dm-nfoVzJgcV5RVs0VokVSJZMr8JIM2Ijcebzw2t4hN8SNATQQrxR7P11JjlgIjpl-KsSZ0Mt8B53yJdaQZyGmmGCEvWbCy8Ept8gn3m5PYH0g/s320/photo+3.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe and Mike at Falls Lake</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQOJ6wb0vIjev9QHm9NQFV6mO969f9ZW1oWfg1Nkejl1T3jWqisBDwpCoNOCmhKcZsz09vdtgBzUhR9t_b8pzVOOnnf0EE4Tvd9qZilxoKKpbLENAbq3I5F4ofnzmZt7vSoI8ClQqlXHY/s1600/photo+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQOJ6wb0vIjev9QHm9NQFV6mO969f9ZW1oWfg1Nkejl1T3jWqisBDwpCoNOCmhKcZsz09vdtgBzUhR9t_b8pzVOOnnf0EE4Tvd9qZilxoKKpbLENAbq3I5F4ofnzmZt7vSoI8ClQqlXHY/s320/photo+4.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checking out the wildlife at Falls Lake</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-42695161235360861222011-10-19T10:00:00.000-04:002011-10-19T14:21:48.460-04:00Summer recap: potty trainingI neglected to mention that Gabe is now potty trained. We had been talking about it for a while during the spring, and even though he was on the young side (just over 2), we decided to let him give it a shot while we were all home during the summer. We wanted to wait until after our first trip to Dallas (2 days after Mike finished teaching) because we couldn't imagine flying (with layovers) with a potty-training toddler. During our trip, Gabe told everyone who would listen all about how he would wear underwear when we got home. In retrospect, the process was pretty painless. I did some reading, but mostly followed the <a href="http://jessicaandpatrick.blogspot.com/2010/05/potty-training-day-one.html">advice from a friend</a> whose son potty trained during the previous summer at about the same age.<br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent;">Essentially, we went cold-turkey from diapers to underwear. Day 1 was fairly novel; Gabe was excited about his new (Thomas and Mickey Mouse) underwear, and he (generally) dutifully sat on the potty every 20 minutes when Mike's alarm chimed. We had a couple of accidents and a couple of tantrums when sitting on the potty got old, but overall it was a good day. Day 2 was not as good. The morning was ok, but after naptime, Gabe refused to sit on the potty at all. After a huge crying fit, we decided to revert to diapers for the evening. I thought it was the sign of a failed attempt (which we were ok with; we knew it was early), but it turned out to be the revitalization that Gabe needed. Day 3 saw many fewer accidents (and Grandma and Grandpa came to visit!), and on Day 4, we drove out to the coast to spend a week at the beach. The vacation turned out to be the perfect potty-training destination; Gabe was completely distracted by the new house and lots of family. We got over our cabin fever from not leaving the house for three days, and Gabe had a perfect toilet: the ocean! By the time we got back home, Gabe was completely potty trained - talk about a productive vacation!</span><br />
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What we didn't expect was that Gabe would night-train himself two months later. I guess he just didn't like wearing pull-ups; by early September, we were completely diaper free. So... who needs size 4 Pampers? :)Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-45207408205555612342011-10-11T17:40:00.000-04:002011-10-11T17:40:03.103-04:00Rock starGabe has been really into singing songs lately. His favorites are most of the TMBG "Here Comes Science" album, but he also loves "Hey Oh" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers and "Dynamite" (except he sings "I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, Galileo, Galileo..."). Thursday after Mike picked him up from the babysitter's house, I found him singing "<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 1.2em;">Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" </span><span style="background-color: transparent;">into the USB car charger "microphone".</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/30155351?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="360"></iframe><br />
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<br />Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-35151732100888973082011-09-19T12:55:00.000-04:002011-09-19T12:55:03.668-04:00We have officially entered the "why" stageGabe has changed in so many ways since the beginning of the summer; he falls asleep on his own, is potty trained (even at night), participates in group classes, helps out around the house, and tells funny jokes and stories. He's always been inquisitive and wanted to know how things worked. However, last night at bedtime, he stalled with an endless stream of "no, but why"s. Some highlights: "Why can't Red Robin come to Chick-Fil-A with us?" "Where does Red Robin sleep?" and "How will Red Robin open the elevator?". Oh boy. Also, can you tell where we've eaten out lately?<br />
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We went to two different REIs this weekend to pick up Gabe's new shoes and some backpacking gear. He was thrilled because he could ride elevators and 2-wheeled bikes and play in tents. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="299" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/29268696?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="398"></iframe>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-22296594008027441292011-09-15T08:25:00.004-04:002011-09-19T12:56:37.862-04:00Summer recapYou can tell we had a busy summer because I haven't posted since May. Yikes! I guess now that it is September (and although it's been in the 90s all summer, the high tomorrow is 60), that means fall is almost here.<br />
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We stayed busy all summer. We took 2 trips to Dallas to visit Bubbie and Papa (one fun and one so that Mike could attend an AP Calculus teaching conference), spent a week at Carolina Beach with the extended family, spent another week with Grandma and Grandpa in NC, put the house on the market (including painting, flooring, and a full storage unit), and spent a lot of time with Team B. Mike is teaching 3 new classes this year, and I am editing full-time until I start teaching in October.<br />
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I've posted some representative photos and videos below. <span style="text-align: left;">You can see albums from the </span><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/mfriedman13/20110718?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCJv8_qnuuumLjQE&feat=directlink" style="text-align: left;">first</a><span style="text-align: left;"> and </span><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/mfriedman13/20110915?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCLqm1_CHsqjv-gE&feat=directlink" style="text-align: left;">second</a><span style="text-align: left;"> parts of our summer, and our </span><a href="http://www.vimeo.com/goteamfriedman/videos" style="text-align: left;">vimeo</a><span style="text-align: left;"> channel has a lot more random videos from the past year.</span> Mike also has some funny stories to relate, so look forward to that shortly.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTOE4WkCn2gxf2C7EZ8oU1zg1gus0BpqmuDIMLESAqGT1Bnr5ZA1TzgPrTcvugTar5HSaAgPPadKOaUlelsV_dNIQdQVRyHa2HeXgZb6td6K_OOUEc1L0qHSmT1WwCJ6SFGkLjgnKTz2M/s1600/DSC_3602.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTOE4WkCn2gxf2C7EZ8oU1zg1gus0BpqmuDIMLESAqGT1Bnr5ZA1TzgPrTcvugTar5HSaAgPPadKOaUlelsV_dNIQdQVRyHa2HeXgZb6td6K_OOUEc1L0qHSmT1WwCJ6SFGkLjgnKTz2M/s320/DSC_3602.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Feeding the ducks on Father's Day</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwg8lTp5NujkNRWz1OWVpaegfMYjucY5PVbCOkxBT33RtU-vm9mw3RoK5jXImPk7utAV6OhI0zdgcMFeCfz-zp13v2F1cjbSuclop6oI78clz9ssPCpDEIG3RCPMmxwoXfbStrginChYc/s1600/DSC_3643.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwg8lTp5NujkNRWz1OWVpaegfMYjucY5PVbCOkxBT33RtU-vm9mw3RoK5jXImPk7utAV6OhI0zdgcMFeCfz-zp13v2F1cjbSuclop6oI78clz9ssPCpDEIG3RCPMmxwoXfbStrginChYc/s320/DSC_3643.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe's favorite part of the Dallas Zoo</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJi3hS-R-hzNMKrAD7j9pp_UpwB2CGqMCefh7g0wteSXe9DFRTOclSyDcjS7rN0ErTcyP9b8WvvX7OZh0avRhbRl-2iffMFythWFBmHBpqOzQp3xBQU5ievPjkdHV2gAcZhOFg0cmUjQ/s1600/DSC_3655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQJi3hS-R-hzNMKrAD7j9pp_UpwB2CGqMCefh7g0wteSXe9DFRTOclSyDcjS7rN0ErTcyP9b8WvvX7OZh0avRhbRl-2iffMFythWFBmHBpqOzQp3xBQU5ievPjkdHV2gAcZhOFg0cmUjQ/s320/DSC_3655.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe's second favorite part of the Dallas Zoo</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3z2eYtmXoH5cuSufi93CpoLTyWfwEi_Walgc0hr57kkt9BSviWhwqwTjnbksaoW9kXIflRXEdKWh_WEuI4LFsNzVzdXhrVRLHk9_DZL6Mt6OzlOLyO-Z9riVpHuqgxDrL5pNap7NOL0/s1600/DSC_3728.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX3z2eYtmXoH5cuSufi93CpoLTyWfwEi_Walgc0hr57kkt9BSviWhwqwTjnbksaoW9kXIflRXEdKWh_WEuI4LFsNzVzdXhrVRLHk9_DZL6Mt6OzlOLyO-Z9riVpHuqgxDrL5pNap7NOL0/s320/DSC_3728.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Playing on the iPad with Larry and Sam</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTr20RwTzlymoDqMG9CPPvgd4svNllH6mub1Qayh_ZYlRaYHEyI55Et9jlgzfzrPmEXJ0bAL2klbacI_BOs72JwtHdRoPoOq2KiQJbPOCLyyiNXxSpNF5S_5-ZT8DrjRsrbbIRcGSYZJw/s1600/DSC_3743.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTr20RwTzlymoDqMG9CPPvgd4svNllH6mub1Qayh_ZYlRaYHEyI55Et9jlgzfzrPmEXJ0bAL2klbacI_BOs72JwtHdRoPoOq2KiQJbPOCLyyiNXxSpNF5S_5-ZT8DrjRsrbbIRcGSYZJw/s320/DSC_3743.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snuggling with Stella at the beach</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhun19_yccoH265DUw83krErDaRbkhKQ8kW7FCV0jpSEvhSxDmouWDi-blPa4B9jChmv2lmJuxKb4mh5rjUJtrbS7GrORYp0GzBNeCOHjHl4IFuXbYQ6sLHqP-IyTrBfXrL1oi9sBYx1ps/s1600/DSC_3791.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhun19_yccoH265DUw83krErDaRbkhKQ8kW7FCV0jpSEvhSxDmouWDi-blPa4B9jChmv2lmJuxKb4mh5rjUJtrbS7GrORYp0GzBNeCOHjHl4IFuXbYQ6sLHqP-IyTrBfXrL1oi9sBYx1ps/s320/DSC_3791.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Camping during Hurricane Irene</td></tr>
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Spinning on the chair and singing with Papa</div>
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Riding his bike all by himself</div>
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Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-58865490152161395072011-05-28T00:50:00.000-04:002011-05-28T00:50:10.256-04:00Creativity<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We've always known that Gabe was creative, but he's just gotten to the point where it really expresses itself in a way that we understand. On Tuesday, I took Gabe to story time at Barnes & Noble. After the story, he decided to play in the little corner of the kids' section where the toys are; the area has different flooring, a couple of pillars, and a roof. He explained to me that he was riding the elevator (his favorite thing in the world right now). He showed me that the doors were between the pillars, and that he had to push the button to go "down, down, down." </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGWRCGY_BkMoL7eEFw3LFOE6TyUAL7v5truu8ekYzzDhh4yDzX0GpTz4mPXsZlRpYQLCw55mQLxYrgSStzlv5gMlSwaXIsaN6kq1Sj8q1MGQ4RyOxp1e60WEQDYKA4dhl5cf3MbtqSNw/s1600/elevator.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGWRCGY_BkMoL7eEFw3LFOE6TyUAL7v5truu8ekYzzDhh4yDzX0GpTz4mPXsZlRpYQLCw55mQLxYrgSStzlv5gMlSwaXIsaN6kq1Sj8q1MGQ4RyOxp1e60WEQDYKA4dhl5cf3MbtqSNw/s320/elevator.png" width="240" /></a></div><br />
Next, it was my turn to ride. Gabe got very frustrated when I wasn't properly pushing the buttons (I thought it was just an arbitrary spot on the wall). As he later demonstrated, the elevator's functions were controlled by a set of paints that he'd found in a display on the wall. The red paint was for down. I'm not sure what the others did :)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYxXCR8YMGmD9CZXnEJB69paXMdalvYkxMcVvlfL0CbVAb1UbNc6H_EjLZyWSTBIRlFe9EQB0yeBJJvUfz3fuLM8QuXIC2VMDa-TNU8TvO2AYjw0oLMNKwZV2Rt2mBzhvVyAXSCKHjkg/s1600/elevator2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYxXCR8YMGmD9CZXnEJB69paXMdalvYkxMcVvlfL0CbVAb1UbNc6H_EjLZyWSTBIRlFe9EQB0yeBJJvUfz3fuLM8QuXIC2VMDa-TNU8TvO2AYjw0oLMNKwZV2Rt2mBzhvVyAXSCKHjkg/s320/elevator2.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br />
Later that evening, Gabe and Mike were playing with Gabe's favorite toy: my old little people camping set. He'd put the daddy laying down in the back of the jeep, with the mommy standing outside. (Side note: before swimming lessons, we change Gabe into his swim diaper/swim trunks while he stands in the cargo area of Mike's SUV. It's a lot easier than dealing with the locker room, and it's become a part of his summer routine.) He explained to Mike that mommy was changing daddy's diaper. He then moved the people to the front seat, so that they could drive to work. Once at work, Mike found a little person to be the boss, and when I came downstairs, Gabe was pretending that the boss was talking to mommy and daddy. What does the boss say? "Blah, blah, blah, blah, get to work!"<br />
<br />
Last night, I tried to explain to Gabe that I needed to go downstairs and work on my slides for the guest lecture I was giving in Developmental Biology. Later, Gabe explained to Mike, "Mommy has to go to work and ride the slide." Great, now he thinks that I work at a <a href="http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/10/12/">magical playground</a>. To make matters worse, this morning in the car, Gabe asked for a special treat (which, among other things, means the tin of mints in my car). The mint tin was empty, but I have a stash at work, so I told him I'd bring him a special treat when I picked him up in the afternoon. "Mommy will go to work and have special treats." He must think I'm a horrible parent, dropping him off every day so that I can go have fun for hours without him! :)<br />
<br />
Happy April birthdays to Ann H, Megan, Colton, and Quinn. Happy May birthdays to Ted, Eli (1 year old!), Uncle Cliff, Maddox, Deb, Phil, and Josh. Also, we have two more babies to welcome: congrats to Kurt and Geneva on baby Charlotte and to Danny, Sarah, and Mia on baby Jack!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-46252391696549027262011-05-28T00:36:00.000-04:002011-05-28T00:36:12.238-04:00Gabriel 2.0, Mommy PhDThe first weekend in May was busy for us - on May 6, Gabe turned 2 (although now he says he's three years old), and on May 7, I received my PhD hood. Grandma came to visit for both events and we had a great weekend.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgZhNt37pFJEP8DJr497R7Y-leRnBWFld3iVh89PU4X2hF_-GHDFA9DAv-6yaDADn5SIFtOVhIz11XdFGUNAYnhyphenhyphenXVa7HjloVCwBNC-yne9QdJ6dZKHpxL31L7DyLvLRA9eHDr-hWq3CU/s1600/DSC_3452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgZhNt37pFJEP8DJr497R7Y-leRnBWFld3iVh89PU4X2hF_-GHDFA9DAv-6yaDADn5SIFtOVhIz11XdFGUNAYnhyphenhyphenXVa7HjloVCwBNC-yne9QdJ6dZKHpxL31L7DyLvLRA9eHDr-hWq3CU/s320/DSC_3452.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>For Gabe's birthday, Grandma and I took Gabe to Marbles Kids Museum for a busy morning riding buses, pirate ships, gardening, building race cars, grocery shopping, and enjoying a picnic lunch (er, chocolate chip cookie). We baked a cake (which Gabe looked forward to all day long - next year we may have cake for breakfast, just to get it out of the way!), opened presents with Daddy (more trains, oh my!), opened Gabe's new trike from J4, and then celebrated with dinner, cake, and presents with Team B. It was a long, fun day.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFfKrpozQ7VxoCK_egg36wQRNQDTsJ-9Dvhy-0VUPmgx_HA-YhW4sOClzCUQZKion7ZoH9ZJLSIdKJghOzaW3zLkczl7mfAZ3Vs9Fx1ZMkGNbGVPHKJQHJ4t96yDGowGD5m49bDG_sb0/s1600/DSC_3519.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJFfKrpozQ7VxoCK_egg36wQRNQDTsJ-9Dvhy-0VUPmgx_HA-YhW4sOClzCUQZKion7ZoH9ZJLSIdKJghOzaW3zLkczl7mfAZ3Vs9Fx1ZMkGNbGVPHKJQHJ4t96yDGowGD5m49bDG_sb0/s320/DSC_3519.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blowing out candles with Ben's help</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzy-ODzly-n_aUifraMAKytAfPgh1L127EK0vlA4s0d33ESC9qWSZnB0q3mBezSxNX8uuwR3_rs4kCCcsH-0a7bEPOuZdaP0yClp6YdH02T-rdKz3pUOMrIi4k-IxVVnM6TmvXIRAIfmI/s1600/DSC_3523.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzy-ODzly-n_aUifraMAKytAfPgh1L127EK0vlA4s0d33ESC9qWSZnB0q3mBezSxNX8uuwR3_rs4kCCcsH-0a7bEPOuZdaP0yClp6YdH02T-rdKz3pUOMrIi4k-IxVVnM6TmvXIRAIfmI/s320/DSC_3523.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Digging in!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7oWPlX3PhL3E5MZ4xcMt1bnN8UUZwXKkTAH2Mag4RPLVZVKKnSIiB0RG84l21lJJGQTu1N4qF7BtAJ4Ms6vAC6jH0DZRGUJsS1IovZ6hm4DbTjBtulmSUWCABCzzRdNOrgFJ5wJWahf8/s1600/DSC_3544.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7oWPlX3PhL3E5MZ4xcMt1bnN8UUZwXKkTAH2Mag4RPLVZVKKnSIiB0RG84l21lJJGQTu1N4qF7BtAJ4Ms6vAC6jH0DZRGUJsS1IovZ6hm4DbTjBtulmSUWCABCzzRdNOrgFJ5wJWahf8/s320/DSC_3544.JPG" width="212" /></a>On Saturday morning, we trekked up to Chapel Hill for my PhD hooding ceremony. I got to spend some time catching up with Matt, and Mom, Mike, and Gabe got to spend time with Kelly and Matt's family. Gabe was awesome - he spent a lot of time running around, but he came in to watch me walk across stage and met me with hugs after the recessional. Mike, Mom, Gabe, and I had a celebratory lunch at Brixx, and then trekked home for a relaxing weekend.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-54850060277329850862011-05-26T16:49:00.000-04:002011-05-26T16:49:25.005-04:00ABCsGabe loves to sing and dance. Here is a quick clip of him singing the ABCs along with his music table and doing what we call the Tommy Schoolbus dance (it's a long story).<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="300" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/23458341?byline=0" width="400"></iframe><br />
Gabe singing the ABCs<br />
24 months<br />
May 2011Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-30433250575384410972011-05-26T16:47:00.001-04:002011-05-31T14:25:54.241-04:00Easter with Uncle RickyWe had a great Easter this year, mostly because it was the first holiday that Gabe was really interested in and could look forward to. We celebrated it several times: we went to an Easter egg hunt (madness!) in downtown Apex, we celebrated early with Grandma who was here to watch Gabe during his babysitter's spring break, had our annual seder to celebrate Passover, and then we flew to LA to spend the weekend with Uncle Ricky for Easter proper. I'll let the photos do the talking.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnTM-OHN3QeEewOlt7AvGdwm26i_INYFnLB8nvdAR1DVyFkmIbAIuyZJMwfDL-ByjOns2FgoSLrhLcKE1CuxaQL5pHSfsUuchiTpQ30WXkhyQKajUwR9q3oYnGcrHkCPSLn4prTJLHm04/s1600/DSC_3283.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnTM-OHN3QeEewOlt7AvGdwm26i_INYFnLB8nvdAR1DVyFkmIbAIuyZJMwfDL-ByjOns2FgoSLrhLcKE1CuxaQL5pHSfsUuchiTpQ30WXkhyQKajUwR9q3oYnGcrHkCPSLn4prTJLHm04/s320/DSC_3283.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easter egg hunt @ Apex town campus</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSPs9aWKNzR35n7RlVYaDT03jrbSC5UfSeg3PRYEPvzJZywwXYVsPI6ENjendjoZsL6tDwk5GJUAubRvuIe_wNj9htbGJ5yJs1-GmW8CL3Ktd9Tr3YFDIOhsyNND_Pkc4NjRAS_QqMiQo/s1600/DSC_3320.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSPs9aWKNzR35n7RlVYaDT03jrbSC5UfSeg3PRYEPvzJZywwXYVsPI6ENjendjoZsL6tDwk5GJUAubRvuIe_wNj9htbGJ5yJs1-GmW8CL3Ktd9Tr3YFDIOhsyNND_Pkc4NjRAS_QqMiQo/s320/DSC_3320.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe discovering that easter eggs contain candy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Ta9hIbdFiUkNv-PzP9qa5YW3J-WgIFidgc0ty-Gdo0q-TWjOh8Q5Oe1T8-ChoXD0qKuXqOXDiRB8L_2TgSJTIIzdRIAD0hGuJE4H_-XaDngGLWue4mGCAnI46VE_MwChvrNXfa5NKUs/s1600/DSC_3357.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Ta9hIbdFiUkNv-PzP9qa5YW3J-WgIFidgc0ty-Gdo0q-TWjOh8Q5Oe1T8-ChoXD0qKuXqOXDiRB8L_2TgSJTIIzdRIAD0hGuJE4H_-XaDngGLWue4mGCAnI46VE_MwChvrNXfa5NKUs/s320/DSC_3357.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandma and egg dyeing Easter eggs</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1R7PNwMT2oXbAt92CAmqJN9TdT6c0KwTcWLlOfqsJK8ujJUz7ax94xctLjdup8NVV6u6VPeFpOcULJ7u-8oSsCZ_v47EZswwO9UJux_DfxnOOvdKomQStQrVvCEe7cgoMxlnHl8Gznxk/s1600/DSC_3339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1R7PNwMT2oXbAt92CAmqJN9TdT6c0KwTcWLlOfqsJK8ujJUz7ax94xctLjdup8NVV6u6VPeFpOcULJ7u-8oSsCZ_v47EZswwO9UJux_DfxnOOvdKomQStQrVvCEe7cgoMxlnHl8Gznxk/s320/DSC_3339.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe and Mia at Passover</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6pZZt2hA6NLkkgzGQ7c3EOEnIG7rEChuE9mYIs99aznSgq5uInOZqMMZgXwNbbkWhf3dDy4KXiClUQjELQOP3MzVue4CzWrYe1X_tmgLYvCssxNcY0nWjDsluXPTbsDT6mNWoD6k5Yjg/s1600/DSC_3380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6pZZt2hA6NLkkgzGQ7c3EOEnIG7rEChuE9mYIs99aznSgq5uInOZqMMZgXwNbbkWhf3dDy4KXiClUQjELQOP3MzVue4CzWrYe1X_tmgLYvCssxNcY0nWjDsluXPTbsDT6mNWoD6k5Yjg/s320/DSC_3380.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe with Mommy and Uncle Ricky at Manhattan Beach</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrAuFiz5eNu9X-BGZ9uJEMXifbdcTnpPClSdT6jKllk_rtFkILs5J1NsN9CHKVPBDlkUbBzVPS3NV8cVb7Aq8BLkEPRZNNnq6KzFmlOW_ESynQqWaand0cdcmLvGsZaYhBX2ARSd7hqeI/s1600/DSC_3388.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrAuFiz5eNu9X-BGZ9uJEMXifbdcTnpPClSdT6jKllk_rtFkILs5J1NsN9CHKVPBDlkUbBzVPS3NV8cVb7Aq8BLkEPRZNNnq6KzFmlOW_ESynQqWaand0cdcmLvGsZaYhBX2ARSd7hqeI/s320/DSC_3388.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dyeing Easter eggs with Daddy in LA</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5aYWZA6cHLtRXqxqTt70JFNo3kCbJhbnLytkDCt28FY0Jz-8NvCRPs41so6620x7n6Zn4svUXDkkCz2GrGF-jn4K3J37DZP_NbNWHwo2s3NGNbV1g7x5tb6jLY2GxMEdmSbxxqwbATiA/s1600/DSC_3401.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5aYWZA6cHLtRXqxqTt70JFNo3kCbJhbnLytkDCt28FY0Jz-8NvCRPs41so6620x7n6Zn4svUXDkkCz2GrGF-jn4K3J37DZP_NbNWHwo2s3NGNbV1g7x5tb6jLY2GxMEdmSbxxqwbATiA/s320/DSC_3401.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Easter bunny came to LA</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8mvACD5DVUdpgP6jwHUsDBDyu8TR6CNe3zeOQ6wsC3sDsK1ad5c-mcCe4u7Whp87t1xEtqDVZt03yqHARMgAlMtJ9f93IDNI1kHUCfzOnLLGFrytUnpzCJZZzjWjSK1BmsiAqihprlR8/s1600/DSC_3420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8mvACD5DVUdpgP6jwHUsDBDyu8TR6CNe3zeOQ6wsC3sDsK1ad5c-mcCe4u7Whp87t1xEtqDVZt03yqHARMgAlMtJ9f93IDNI1kHUCfzOnLLGFrytUnpzCJZZzjWjSK1BmsiAqihprlR8/s320/DSC_3420.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snuggling with Uncle Ricky</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-85780389949635000862011-04-13T21:28:00.000-04:002011-05-26T09:56:03.358-04:00BaltimoreI wrote this post some time ago, but apparently it never posted...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpGIJGoW4fqt58IllOX4qZ6FPoNCNyQR8X2GaPpwlrJLycR59-wMw6ndt6vy_dqLs5lNTLWNU3pT6ZLdQ3vpPCFnx7BUzndJxR7aT2EVBpcNI2saamEfIZGu8ysWnTgRD4JDlWdrKnnbk/s1600/DSC_3275.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpGIJGoW4fqt58IllOX4qZ6FPoNCNyQR8X2GaPpwlrJLycR59-wMw6ndt6vy_dqLs5lNTLWNU3pT6ZLdQ3vpPCFnx7BUzndJxR7aT2EVBpcNI2saamEfIZGu8ysWnTgRD4JDlWdrKnnbk/s320/DSC_3275.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe in a rare moment of watching the fish</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Last weekend we took a trip to Baltimore to visit Jacob and Jess. Although the weather was cold (we left behind warm NC weather!), we had a great time cooking, gaming, playing D&D from the MD side of the webcam, and catching up. We spent Saturday morning downtown with Emily, Brian, and baby Russell at the aquarium. There were a ton of awesome fish and sting rays and Gabe loved the... elevators. On occasion he settled for the escalators, but we spent most of our time hunting out ways to get from one floor to the next. I was feeling bad about it until we ran into another former UNC grad and his son (who was doing the same thing!)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXt-VC_NAXeOgCqRKfhextpMEJqxaqfhb_S1keFULOvQcXBq96hL9BPdOgx5QMM2jtOTSri3BjiL5Bnn9tsx0fpMLsgkkgpkem9yg_5b2Db2oSrlGdCCZgZTStiRHZ60kQXaeMNb07NK4/s1600/DSC_3279.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXt-VC_NAXeOgCqRKfhextpMEJqxaqfhb_S1keFULOvQcXBq96hL9BPdOgx5QMM2jtOTSri3BjiL5Bnn9tsx0fpMLsgkkgpkem9yg_5b2Db2oSrlGdCCZgZTStiRHZ60kQXaeMNb07NK4/s320/DSC_3279.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emily and Russell, Jacob and Jess enjoying Gabe's 2nd favorite activity: riding the bus</td></tr>
</tbody></table>In closing, here is Gabe showing off his new toddler eating skills with some avocado chocolate pudding :)<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" height="300" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/22311943?byline=0" width="400"></iframe><br />
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Happy birthdays to Auntie M, Jeremy, Richie, and big Brian. Also a big congrats to Jeremy, Lizzy, and big sister Emma on the arrival of baby Lane!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-30580712556545995862011-04-12T21:27:00.000-04:002011-04-12T21:27:58.858-04:00My brother moonlights as an NFL agentThat's right, Rick isn't only a writer for Criminal Minds; he met his favorite player Dallas Clark at a game last year and got him a spot on the show. Colts tight end Dallas Clark's episode of the show (co-written by Rick) airs tomorrow night. Here's a teaser (you can see Rick in the background of some of the shots, sitting in the writer's chair).<br />
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http://www.nfl.com/videos/indianapolis-colts/09000d5d81f38978/Dallas-hits-HollywoodErinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-41755836130488204782011-04-07T21:42:00.002-04:002011-04-07T21:53:16.755-04:0023 monthsIt's funny - some days I am amazed that Gabe is almost 2. On other days, I can't believe he has another month before he is officially 2, because he has been acting like a two-year-old for a couple of months now. This is a good and a bad thing - he's quite independent and is very easy to communicate with verbally. He's also very much into the "I do it!" phase. There are a number of things that Gabe feels are his jobs, and he gets upset if he catches us doing them. This includes putting soap in the dishwasher, using the microwave and toaster oven, starting the washer or dryer, flushing the toilet, opening or closing doors, turning lights on or off, and operating any type of remote control. It got to a point where he was in the horrible habit of screaming, "No! I do it!" any time he wanted to do something on his own. On Tuesday we started working on prompting him to replace his "no" with "May I do it please?" I'm very impressed with his progress in 2 days.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3cI0WPMOgK9OA4AhT3Fi3GVZuKip2TFfn7m42aHBZhxbT1XgsJyuIbeVnmuPQq9hc-oqcmBxsqDqyQtrnEKNnue2uEStz9LtiFvg0AZrpe9QGsukEKi57xX2-fHPlypI0zGyZX6Jsqs/s1600/DSC_3230.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3cI0WPMOgK9OA4AhT3Fi3GVZuKip2TFfn7m42aHBZhxbT1XgsJyuIbeVnmuPQq9hc-oqcmBxsqDqyQtrnEKNnue2uEStz9LtiFvg0AZrpe9QGsukEKi57xX2-fHPlypI0zGyZX6Jsqs/s320/DSC_3230.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabe and Alisha playing Rock Band</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Some of Gabe's recent verbal gems:<br />
<ul><li>"We'll talk about it." I probably say this a lot.</li>
<li>When watching the rotating loading icon on Netflix on my iphone, he said, "It's spinning... like the Milky Way!"</li>
<li>"I say.. 'Ok, Mommy'"</li>
<li>"I'm working on it."</li>
<li>At bedtime, Gabe often asks where the non-bedtime parent is. The other night, Mike explained that I was downstairs working. Gabe said, "Mommy go downstairs and work. Mommy go downstairs and play guitar. Mommy go downstairs and sing 'Who Are You'." I guess we had been playing a lot of Rock Band lately. I recently taught him to sing the song by the Who, and for some reason he now thinks the PS3 microphone is called a "who are you."</li>
</ul><br />
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Congratulations to Dr. LaFave!Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6739578299884264273.post-21081049619049519522011-04-05T19:41:00.000-04:002011-04-05T19:41:45.893-04:00My picky eaterIt's no secret that Gabe is a picky eater. We've been battling with foods ever since he started eating solids - first it was the gag reflex, then we found out that he has a pretty potent milk allergy, and then he entered his terrible twos a bit early. End result: a handful of foods that he will eat reliably, and that's about it. There was a brief phase where Gabe ate normally - grilled chicken, pasta, some veggies - but that is long gone. Gabe will eat about any kind of fruit or grain that we give him, and he's a fan of almost every milk substitute we can find (soy milk, soy pudding, rice ice cream, vegan cheese), but he has a very limited selection of proteins (chicken nuggets and hot dogs) and an even more limited selection of veggies (pretty much none).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVwAvABZ6PnTrwUqBn-78asN6anV87Eku4qmm27HwyfVTZDh_fpBdDMOQNyuHSA-I0O3GZ_MAjlZGMBUWIYiQb9vkFeIim-fZJUDrfCmgGq8MDDyUhLqmaremtEGKnfP2Yu7CDNlLq9rg/s1600/photo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVwAvABZ6PnTrwUqBn-78asN6anV87Eku4qmm27HwyfVTZDh_fpBdDMOQNyuHSA-I0O3GZ_MAjlZGMBUWIYiQb9vkFeIim-fZJUDrfCmgGq8MDDyUhLqmaremtEGKnfP2Yu7CDNlLq9rg/s320/photo+2.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>The last week has been quite an adventure, however. I've been trying to sneak veggies into his diet: I buy him <a href="http://gigi-reviews.blogspot.com/2010/06/trader-joes-fiberful-bar-fruit-veggie.html">Trader Joe's fiber bars</a> that are made from a combo of vegetable and fruit purees, I mix his green juice (Odwalla superfood) with <a href="http://www.plumorganics.com/for_second_blends.php">pureed spinach and veggies</a>, and I recently started experimenting with some <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Deceptively-Delicious-Simple-Secrets-Eating/dp/006176793X/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0">hidden vegetable recipes</a> (the avocado chocolate pudding was a hit, see left, and it's milk-free!). But there are some oddities in his diet. Specifically, Gabe is a big fan of hummus, pistachios, and pickles. He recently discovered that he likes popcorn shrimp (or shrimp nuggets, as he calls them), and yesterday decided that he likes black licorice. That's my boy - he won't eat spaghetti, but he's learning to shell his own pistachios.Erinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04720063851330141570noreply@blogger.com1