Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Pirate Baby
Here are some picture of our little pirate on his way to a birthday party, post-haircut. He is wearing his new shirt from Matt and Di that says "Captain's Baby" (picked up on their recent trip to the coast! Thanks, guys!) and his supercool Vans (a hand-me-down from a friend--sorry, Mom, the baby is wearing skulls...but still he's cute!). p.s. His shirt says "Sea Pup" on the back! ha!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Baby's First Haircut!
The "Before" pictures: the Haystack
Okay, so it wasn't exactly hanging in his eyes or worthy of pigtails, but since we like Alton's hair to look neat and tidy it was time for a trim. He had feathers hanging over his ears, suspiciously mullet-like wisps in the back, and some rough waves in the back that I was convinced would lay flatter if he had a cut. I surfed around online to find any baby haircut tutorials I could and came up with nada. There were good suggestions and prep ideas, but no cut-by-numbers guide like I was hoping for. Oh well, we would wing it!
We prepped our cutting area and "customer." We decided to cut it in the dining room on the laminate floor for more space, ease in clean up, light for the video camera (yes, we have video and that will come in a little while), and the television. From asking people about their experiences with the kid haircut place in town, they said that besides having stylists who were used to cutting moving targets (some stylists clearly better than others, though...I had seen some kids with adorable little bowl cuts and some who just got what we call the "Andy Special," i.e., buzz the whole head the same short length), the only gimmicks at the haircut place were airplane-shaped haircut chairs (as if Alton would care) and TVs with cartoons for the kids to watch. Since we don't show Alton any TV, we thought that our own gigantic screen with colorful movement on it would be enthralling. We spread out the kid videos on the floor and he gravitated toward Finding Nemo. Great! He was completely absorbed in the menu screen...and then totally lost interest after that. Doh!
But meanwhile, we were ready. We took the back off of his booster seat to allow for more rear space, strapped him in and lined up our tools on the table: full-size WAHL clippers, scissors, combs, water, towel, beard-size trimmer, and brush. Andy took on the job of distracting Alton while I channeled my inner Paul Mitchell.
Here's our little Beatle, ready to go.
I started with the full-size clippers on guard #8. I had been unofficially polling moms I know who cut their own babies' hair, and the general consensus was that it's easiest just to buzz the head with a big guard and then clean up as needed. I was cool with that look (short and spiky), but was nervous about getting the "fade" right in the back, since I didn't want him to be bald, but definitely wanted to avoid having any fringe hanging out back there.
Okay, so he wasn't in love with the clippers or anything, but that's why we did those first! Get the rough part out of the way before he has zero patience left for us. Scissors came in for some trimming here and there (including his little duck tail curl on his neck--sniff!) and then I brought out the beard trimmer with an adjustable guard for that rear "fade" I was so nervous about doing. He was actually a rock star when it came to being still and quiet. You can see that Andy started out with some toys on the tray to occupy him, but eventually we had to move to the big guns: forbidden objects. We started with the cordless phone from the kitchen, which absorbed Alton enough for Andy to pick up the camera again and snap a few pictures.
You can see in the pictures how riveted he is to the phone, which made it very easy for me to take my time (relatively speaking) and cut his hair very deliberately, the way I wanted to. There were only a few moments where I would be holding a lock and he would whip his head around at the last second, daring me to accidentally hack off a chunk and turn him into Little Baby Bald Spot. Andy was great at steadying me and providing a second set of critical eyes for the process. If Alton had allowed it, I would still be there now, doing a little comb here and a little snip there. But Alton let us know when he'd had enough and I hastily wrapped things up, although I was pretty much done by that point, anyway. Here we are, post-haircut!
Mommy and Baby immediately jumped into the shower to wash off all the bits of hair and rinse off, then we got Alton all warm and snuggly in his sweatsuit and sat him on the bathroom counter to review his 'do for any last few straggly long hairs and to give a little style.
So the first haircut is supposed to be a little bittersweet--maybe Mama sheds a few tears because her baby boy is growing up, major milestone, etc. I was definitely feeling unsettled, but it was mostly because I didn't like the way it was turning out as I was cutting! In hindsight, I think that starting with the clippers was a mistake for us, because it cut his front hair a lot shorter than I had intended. Yes, he was pretty much bald for the first 4-5 months of his life, but the little hair he had was wispy, and now his hair was a little darker, coarser, and thicker. His hair seemed deceptive as I was cutting it, because his long wispy locks with just that teeny hint of wave to them turned into bristly, businesslike strands as soon as I cut off the baby-fine ends. I tried to even it out and would just end up with this humorless hairline that looked like something out of WWI. Being a stylist is stressful! As I finished up and whisked him off to the shower, I felt really bummed that the haircut had turned out so severe and Alton's face seemed both reproachful and overwhelmed as I rubbed in some shampoo.
Andy was really sweet and reassured me every moment.
Fortunately, it's amazing what a difference a shower, some pomade, and a fresh attitude will make! I got some "product" out and spiked the front of Altie's hair and we went to the playroom to have some fun (and then were lured back in to the bathroom by the siren song of the vacuum cleaner--he loves that thing!). He looks like a bit of a "big boy" now, sure, but he looks adorable!
And clock the back! My "fade" turned out great!
Sassy superstar!
Okay, so it wasn't exactly hanging in his eyes or worthy of pigtails, but since we like Alton's hair to look neat and tidy it was time for a trim. He had feathers hanging over his ears, suspiciously mullet-like wisps in the back, and some rough waves in the back that I was convinced would lay flatter if he had a cut. I surfed around online to find any baby haircut tutorials I could and came up with nada. There were good suggestions and prep ideas, but no cut-by-numbers guide like I was hoping for. Oh well, we would wing it!
We prepped our cutting area and "customer." We decided to cut it in the dining room on the laminate floor for more space, ease in clean up, light for the video camera (yes, we have video and that will come in a little while), and the television. From asking people about their experiences with the kid haircut place in town, they said that besides having stylists who were used to cutting moving targets (some stylists clearly better than others, though...I had seen some kids with adorable little bowl cuts and some who just got what we call the "Andy Special," i.e., buzz the whole head the same short length), the only gimmicks at the haircut place were airplane-shaped haircut chairs (as if Alton would care) and TVs with cartoons for the kids to watch. Since we don't show Alton any TV, we thought that our own gigantic screen with colorful movement on it would be enthralling. We spread out the kid videos on the floor and he gravitated toward Finding Nemo. Great! He was completely absorbed in the menu screen...and then totally lost interest after that. Doh!
But meanwhile, we were ready. We took the back off of his booster seat to allow for more rear space, strapped him in and lined up our tools on the table: full-size WAHL clippers, scissors, combs, water, towel, beard-size trimmer, and brush. Andy took on the job of distracting Alton while I channeled my inner Paul Mitchell.
Here's our little Beatle, ready to go.
I started with the full-size clippers on guard #8. I had been unofficially polling moms I know who cut their own babies' hair, and the general consensus was that it's easiest just to buzz the head with a big guard and then clean up as needed. I was cool with that look (short and spiky), but was nervous about getting the "fade" right in the back, since I didn't want him to be bald, but definitely wanted to avoid having any fringe hanging out back there.
Okay, so he wasn't in love with the clippers or anything, but that's why we did those first! Get the rough part out of the way before he has zero patience left for us. Scissors came in for some trimming here and there (including his little duck tail curl on his neck--sniff!) and then I brought out the beard trimmer with an adjustable guard for that rear "fade" I was so nervous about doing. He was actually a rock star when it came to being still and quiet. You can see that Andy started out with some toys on the tray to occupy him, but eventually we had to move to the big guns: forbidden objects. We started with the cordless phone from the kitchen, which absorbed Alton enough for Andy to pick up the camera again and snap a few pictures.
You can see in the pictures how riveted he is to the phone, which made it very easy for me to take my time (relatively speaking) and cut his hair very deliberately, the way I wanted to. There were only a few moments where I would be holding a lock and he would whip his head around at the last second, daring me to accidentally hack off a chunk and turn him into Little Baby Bald Spot. Andy was great at steadying me and providing a second set of critical eyes for the process. If Alton had allowed it, I would still be there now, doing a little comb here and a little snip there. But Alton let us know when he'd had enough and I hastily wrapped things up, although I was pretty much done by that point, anyway. Here we are, post-haircut!
Mommy and Baby immediately jumped into the shower to wash off all the bits of hair and rinse off, then we got Alton all warm and snuggly in his sweatsuit and sat him on the bathroom counter to review his 'do for any last few straggly long hairs and to give a little style.
So the first haircut is supposed to be a little bittersweet--maybe Mama sheds a few tears because her baby boy is growing up, major milestone, etc. I was definitely feeling unsettled, but it was mostly because I didn't like the way it was turning out as I was cutting! In hindsight, I think that starting with the clippers was a mistake for us, because it cut his front hair a lot shorter than I had intended. Yes, he was pretty much bald for the first 4-5 months of his life, but the little hair he had was wispy, and now his hair was a little darker, coarser, and thicker. His hair seemed deceptive as I was cutting it, because his long wispy locks with just that teeny hint of wave to them turned into bristly, businesslike strands as soon as I cut off the baby-fine ends. I tried to even it out and would just end up with this humorless hairline that looked like something out of WWI. Being a stylist is stressful! As I finished up and whisked him off to the shower, I felt really bummed that the haircut had turned out so severe and Alton's face seemed both reproachful and overwhelmed as I rubbed in some shampoo.
Andy was really sweet and reassured me every moment.
Fortunately, it's amazing what a difference a shower, some pomade, and a fresh attitude will make! I got some "product" out and spiked the front of Altie's hair and we went to the playroom to have some fun (and then were lured back in to the bathroom by the siren song of the vacuum cleaner--he loves that thing!). He looks like a bit of a "big boy" now, sure, but he looks adorable!
And clock the back! My "fade" turned out great!
Sassy superstar!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
New Curtains!
One of my major accomplishments last week was to finish making new curtains for our sliding glass door in the dining room. Before the curtains, there were vertical blinds that were very, very ugly. Not just plastic, but textured plastic with a mottled beige-y color to them. The previous owners had also opted for the box-style "valance" made of the same ugly plastic slats. They were also hung very, very crookedly, and through Alton, Minerva and the cruddy curtain pulls that were on there, we had broken several of the blinds and they looked like teeth missing in a gappy mouth. Below is a picture of the blinds open--you can clock their crookedyness in this photo. No, you are not crazy, they ARE higher on the right side.
Next is a picture of the curtains in progress with a little stripey baby butt in the way. I haven't hemmed them yet and they are puddled on the ground--not a good look to keep with all the dog hair we have around this place.
And here they are completed! We are really happy with the way they look, so if you don't like the fabric keep it to yourself. The picture makes it kind of hard to see, but the striping is sort of a "ticking" style, wider stripes with little pinstripes on top in the alternate color.
We have them on rings on the curtain rod for ease in opening and closing, and installed tie-backs as well (to enjoy the view of our mudhole yard--that's next year's project). The tie-backs are a little on the high side to discourage little boys from using them as climbing implements.
Next project: painting over the terra cotta-colored walls that don't go with anything we own! Hmm, now where could we get two grandmas to baby sit our baby while we go nuts with rollers and tape?
Next is a picture of the curtains in progress with a little stripey baby butt in the way. I haven't hemmed them yet and they are puddled on the ground--not a good look to keep with all the dog hair we have around this place.
And here they are completed! We are really happy with the way they look, so if you don't like the fabric keep it to yourself. The picture makes it kind of hard to see, but the striping is sort of a "ticking" style, wider stripes with little pinstripes on top in the alternate color.
We have them on rings on the curtain rod for ease in opening and closing, and installed tie-backs as well (to enjoy the view of our mudhole yard--that's next year's project). The tie-backs are a little on the high side to discourage little boys from using them as climbing implements.
Next project: painting over the terra cotta-colored walls that don't go with anything we own! Hmm, now where could we get two grandmas to baby sit our baby while we go nuts with rollers and tape?
Lu-Wow!
Last weekend the three of us flew down to Southern California to pack in some time with family and friends. The weekend was far too short, but we managed a visit with the Grove family in Thousand Oaks and Aunt Coleen's 50th birthday party in Orange County, plus a quick dinner with Scott, Claire and Holly on our way back home.
As you all know, Alton took his first steps over this weekend, and in hindsight we should have seen it coming. Most of the time at home he is not interested in being led walking around the house holding on to some adult's fingers. He realizes that he can get everywhere faster and independently (very important) if he crawls, so that is the vantage point that he prefers. It has always seemed like he didn't want to walk until he was sure that he would be able to trot around unfettered and not fall down, and until then he would cruise along furniture faster than Minerva in roller skates. Flying down south entailed two flights in each direction--no nonstops. So on our way down we landed in San Jose to change planes and stopped at CPK to grab dinner, when we looked up and happened to see Rick Fox (former Laker) picking up a pizza as well. After taking some pictures with fans, he
settled down at the gate to wait for his flight--he was on our flight! Taking Southwest with the little people. Andy decided to finger-walk an antsy Alton around the seats at our gate to stave off boredom, and what a hit our little guy was! The darling of Gate A8. He would confidently step around, clinging to Daddy's fingers, then stop and wave to his subjects with princely grace, smiling benevolently and causing women to swoon with all the cuteness. At one point he stepped over to Rick Fox and his publicist, who couldn't help but coo at Alton and call him over with smiles. It seems no one is immune to his charms, but we knew that already.
Our first stop was with Andy's Uncle Scott, Aunt Denise and their son, Charlie, in Thousand Oaks. He was really excited about strolling around their pool with Scott and was bent on rearranging their patio furniture as well. The six of us piled in cars and we introduced him to Andy's grandparents, Chuck and Shirley, for the first time and enjoyed lunch with them. Alton was enjoying strolling around the patio in the sunshine so much that we were all on the edge of our seats lest he take his first steps there. We laughed that we had told Alton NOT to walk for the first time on this trip because we didn't have room to bring our camcorder with us. Scott urged us to borrow theirs, but we idiotically refused: "No, how will we get it back to you?" Doh! Silly mommy and daddy! Alton had a great time scarfing turkey and more at the dining table and charming the pants off of all the employees at Great-Grandma and Grandpa's living community. (Note: they did not actually remove their pants. That wouldn't be hygienic.) His little polar bear shoes were a hit there as well as at the airport the night before.
Then it was south to Orange County for the big Scarminach family shindig. Cousins flew in from Colorado, Texas, and Oregon (yay Hillsboro!) and it was really nice to see people we hadn't seen in a really, really long time. Many were meeting Alton for the first time. The party theme was a luau, and Coleen and Mike's backyard was transformed into a grilling paradise as we prepared to eat our way through the afternoon, hunkering down in patches of sun when we could. Alton had just gotten a consignment of baby/toddler clothes from his older (second) cousins *E and *O, and a tiki shirt of theirs layered over a long-sleeved onesie was a perfect match with the Hawaiian decor. He hammed it up for all of his great-aunties and uncles, rode shotgun on his Papa's arm, held hands with Nonna, reached for Uncle KC and demonstrated his stepping prowess for Aunt Cari and Uncle Julio. A great party for a wonderful lady, beloved by all of us, and a really fun time to spend with our family.
Which one doesn't belong?
Baby's first Bocce
This last picture is Alton putting an envelope on his head for a hat. He likes to dazzle us with how many sentences he can understand now. For those who haven't seen him in a little while, here are some things he knows and will respond to:
-What does the doggie say? (panting noise from Alton)
-What does the horsie say? (tongue clicking noise to sound like hoofbeats)
-What does the sheep say? (Baaa or occasionally, Maaa)
-Where is your ear?
-Where is your belly button?
-Comb your hair!
-Kiss! (my favorite)
-Put the hat on your head
He knows many words as we say them, like "banana," "sippy cup," and "Minerva," of course! He tries to say words repeating after us once in a while, and lately we've gotten a pretty clear "ba-na-na" out of him a few times.
We rounded out our visit with a dinner shared with our friends Scott, Claire and Holly. Holly was our one-way ticket back north to the LA area, Claire and Scott put us up for the night, and Scott dropped us at the airport in the a.m. on his way to work. What an efficient machine! Alton met Scott and Claire's dog, Max, and then acquainted himself with their Roomba. Holly gave Alton a "little teddy bear" for his birthday, and we figured out the perfect place for this birthday bear to ride home with us.
People often ask us how Alton does on the plane journey. The answer to that is: great! Andy and I are fairly experienced travelers ourselves, so we try to combat any mishaps or baby woes with lots of planning, planning, planning. We have carefully combed through Babies 'R Us, recommendations from friends and baby web sites to find travel gizmos that really work for us, such as the rolling wheels that attach to our car seat and allow us to stroll it through parking lots, airports, and on and off public transportation with ease. Three of the biggest issues that toddlers have on planes are boredom, the inability to get up and move around, and ear pressure pain on the plane's descent. We tackle the first issue with toys (And, to be honest, with the plane itself. It is amazing how many times Alton finds it amusing to raise and lower the window shade.), the second with short flights, and the third with nursing or sippy cups. This trip brought Alton's flight tally up to 11. We will be sad when he turns two and we have to start paying for a seat for him, but we'll make sure to sign him up for a frequent flier program! We use those Southwest free flights as fast as we earn them. And speaking of Southwest, during this trip guess who was on the cover of their in-flight magazine? Food Network's Alton Brown! What a photo op.
We are glad to be parked at home for awhile, and in April the visitors are coming to us! Look for some posts about that. The summer is going to be jam-packed with travel for us, with some family events, friends to visit, and even a wedding! Alton says he'll see you there!
As you all know, Alton took his first steps over this weekend, and in hindsight we should have seen it coming. Most of the time at home he is not interested in being led walking around the house holding on to some adult's fingers. He realizes that he can get everywhere faster and independently (very important) if he crawls, so that is the vantage point that he prefers. It has always seemed like he didn't want to walk until he was sure that he would be able to trot around unfettered and not fall down, and until then he would cruise along furniture faster than Minerva in roller skates. Flying down south entailed two flights in each direction--no nonstops. So on our way down we landed in San Jose to change planes and stopped at CPK to grab dinner, when we looked up and happened to see Rick Fox (former Laker) picking up a pizza as well. After taking some pictures with fans, he
settled down at the gate to wait for his flight--he was on our flight! Taking Southwest with the little people. Andy decided to finger-walk an antsy Alton around the seats at our gate to stave off boredom, and what a hit our little guy was! The darling of Gate A8. He would confidently step around, clinging to Daddy's fingers, then stop and wave to his subjects with princely grace, smiling benevolently and causing women to swoon with all the cuteness. At one point he stepped over to Rick Fox and his publicist, who couldn't help but coo at Alton and call him over with smiles. It seems no one is immune to his charms, but we knew that already.Our first stop was with Andy's Uncle Scott, Aunt Denise and their son, Charlie, in Thousand Oaks. He was really excited about strolling around their pool with Scott and was bent on rearranging their patio furniture as well. The six of us piled in cars and we introduced him to Andy's grandparents, Chuck and Shirley, for the first time and enjoyed lunch with them. Alton was enjoying strolling around the patio in the sunshine so much that we were all on the edge of our seats lest he take his first steps there. We laughed that we had told Alton NOT to walk for the first time on this trip because we didn't have room to bring our camcorder with us. Scott urged us to borrow theirs, but we idiotically refused: "No, how will we get it back to you?" Doh! Silly mommy and daddy! Alton had a great time scarfing turkey and more at the dining table and charming the pants off of all the employees at Great-Grandma and Grandpa's living community. (Note: they did not actually remove their pants. That wouldn't be hygienic.) His little polar bear shoes were a hit there as well as at the airport the night before.
Then it was south to Orange County for the big Scarminach family shindig. Cousins flew in from Colorado, Texas, and Oregon (yay Hillsboro!) and it was really nice to see people we hadn't seen in a really, really long time. Many were meeting Alton for the first time. The party theme was a luau, and Coleen and Mike's backyard was transformed into a grilling paradise as we prepared to eat our way through the afternoon, hunkering down in patches of sun when we could. Alton had just gotten a consignment of baby/toddler clothes from his older (second) cousins *E and *O, and a tiki shirt of theirs layered over a long-sleeved onesie was a perfect match with the Hawaiian decor. He hammed it up for all of his great-aunties and uncles, rode shotgun on his Papa's arm, held hands with Nonna, reached for Uncle KC and demonstrated his stepping prowess for Aunt Cari and Uncle Julio. A great party for a wonderful lady, beloved by all of us, and a really fun time to spend with our family.
Which one doesn't belong?
Baby's first Bocce
This last picture is Alton putting an envelope on his head for a hat. He likes to dazzle us with how many sentences he can understand now. For those who haven't seen him in a little while, here are some things he knows and will respond to:
-What does the doggie say? (panting noise from Alton)
-What does the horsie say? (tongue clicking noise to sound like hoofbeats)
-What does the sheep say? (Baaa or occasionally, Maaa)
-Where is your ear?
-Where is your belly button?
-Comb your hair!
-Kiss! (my favorite)
-Put the hat on your head
He knows many words as we say them, like "banana," "sippy cup," and "Minerva," of course! He tries to say words repeating after us once in a while, and lately we've gotten a pretty clear "ba-na-na" out of him a few times.
We rounded out our visit with a dinner shared with our friends Scott, Claire and Holly. Holly was our one-way ticket back north to the LA area, Claire and Scott put us up for the night, and Scott dropped us at the airport in the a.m. on his way to work. What an efficient machine! Alton met Scott and Claire's dog, Max, and then acquainted himself with their Roomba. Holly gave Alton a "little teddy bear" for his birthday, and we figured out the perfect place for this birthday bear to ride home with us.
People often ask us how Alton does on the plane journey. The answer to that is: great! Andy and I are fairly experienced travelers ourselves, so we try to combat any mishaps or baby woes with lots of planning, planning, planning. We have carefully combed through Babies 'R Us, recommendations from friends and baby web sites to find travel gizmos that really work for us, such as the rolling wheels that attach to our car seat and allow us to stroll it through parking lots, airports, and on and off public transportation with ease. Three of the biggest issues that toddlers have on planes are boredom, the inability to get up and move around, and ear pressure pain on the plane's descent. We tackle the first issue with toys (And, to be honest, with the plane itself. It is amazing how many times Alton finds it amusing to raise and lower the window shade.), the second with short flights, and the third with nursing or sippy cups. This trip brought Alton's flight tally up to 11. We will be sad when he turns two and we have to start paying for a seat for him, but we'll make sure to sign him up for a frequent flier program! We use those Southwest free flights as fast as we earn them. And speaking of Southwest, during this trip guess who was on the cover of their in-flight magazine? Food Network's Alton Brown! What a photo op.
We are glad to be parked at home for awhile, and in April the visitors are coming to us! Look for some posts about that. The summer is going to be jam-packed with travel for us, with some family events, friends to visit, and even a wedding! Alton says he'll see you there!
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