The Wheels on the Bus

Today didn't turn out anything like we anticipated. Plan A was for me to go to work with Annika in tow. My mom was going to come up on the train, meet me at work, and take Annika back to our house on the bus. The reverse would happen this afternoon. Annika was VERY excited about riding on the bus. Well, we're all still sicker than dogs (including my mom who called at 5-something this morning to cancel), so I stayed home today. There goes plan A.

Plan B came into effect when Annika woke up cheering that today was a bus day. Crap. Can't disappoint a 3-year-old who is that excited about riding on the bus. So, we decided to ride the bus to the mall and meet Eric for lunch. Plan B went the way of Plan A when our bus didn't show up. Apparently, it is on the holiday schedule, but the metro trip planner website didn't feel the need to let us know that little tidbit. Ack!

Plan C was born. We'd drive to the mall, eat lunch with Eric, and then ride a bus around the perimeter of the mall and drive home. Plan C was the golden plan. It worked perfectly. The bus driver was treated to an Annika and Mommy (who sounds like she has a chorus of frogs in her throat) of "The Wheels on the Bus". He was a very good sport and (I suspect) has kids and possibly grandkids of his own. After our ride around 2 sides of the mall, we hopped off and walked back to our van and drove home.

Now, to see if I can convince Annika to lay down for a nap. Mama is tired, feels like the squirrel that Eric ran over today (let's just say the squirrel lost a game of chicken and leave it at that). Fingers crossed for a little girl who is willing to nap...

Artisan Bread

Lately, I've taken to trying my hand at baking artisan bread. I've had some real luck ... and some real flubs - the worst probably being going to bed and then remembering I had dough that was supposed to get baked that night. OOPS!

I've taken to the Jim Lahey no-knead method and am definitely figuring out how to make it work for us. One aspect of the learning curve was based on the fact we have a gas oven, which has a different temperament than an electric oven. (Hence, the first loaf I made got somewhat charred on the bottom.) I've also decided it works better to do the final rise on a piece of parchment paper that I use to lower the dough into and the baked bread out of the Dutch oven. Jim Lahey's method doesn't call for lining the Dutch oven, which made getting my first loaf out of the pan quite a workout.

It just amazes me that this....


Can become this with such little work!

Did Monet's mom have this kind of mess??

Yesterday, I decided it was a prime opportunity for Conor to express himself artistically. After his creative juices were all used up, it was time for a big ol' bath. I took a tip from Conor's day care teachers and put the paint on his high chair tray and then put paper on top when he was all done. Much easier .... aside from now I need to figure out how to get the paint stains off of the high chair tray (oops).

I just want to know if Monet's mom had to worry about her son having a green tongue, too!

(Fear not, I made sure the paints were non-toxic before we got started) :)

Merry Christmas

Wow, what a full Christmas in the Olson home!

It all started off on Christmas Eve day. Annika and I baked cookies for Santa. After that, Bestemor and Bestefar came down from Whidbey to spend the night with us. We decorated cookies, played cards, and enjoyed spending time together. We had our traditional breakfast for dinner (this year, we had blintzes), went to church (it was packed), and read Twas the Night Before Christmas before putting out milk and cookies for Santa. We must have been good this year, because Santa brought us lots of wonderful presents.

After our morning of unwrapping, we started prepping for our Christmas dinner. I planned on us eating at 3:00 and I served up the first plate at 3:02 ... talk about a Christmas miracle!! We were joined by Uncle Troy, Aunt Staci, cousin Ian, cousin Kat, Nana, and our friend Nicole. We ate our fill (and then some) and enjoyed celebrating such a sacred and festive day together.

Leaving cookies and milk for Santa


Annika's new doll (Martha)


Playing cards


Conor wearing his new sweater that Bestemor made

Conor being "helpful"

Annika exploring her artistic side

Annika shared her new hair bow from Santa with Conor .... boy, will he be embarrassed by this photo in a few years!

Annika and Conor playing

Growing, growing, growing

A couple of days ago, Conor turned 8-months old. It is amazing to think about the fact he has been with us almost as long as I was pregnant with him.

Over the past month, he sprouted his first two teeth, has improved eye/hand coordination, is eating more solids (favorites: mango, applesauce, squash with corn, and prunes with apple), and is interacting more and more with those of us around him. He laughs a great deal of the time ... especially when big sister Annika is there to entertain him.

Smilin' boy

This picture was taken by Conor's day care teacher. I love how she captured his truly joyous smile. Such a happy boy!!

Snow Day

Last night, we got pounded by a snow and wind storm. It was great! We got about 3 inches of snow, which is sandwiched between a few layers of ice. No surprise that today is a snow day. No one is going anywhere.

So, Eric took the opportunity to teach Annika how to make a snowman. Unfortunately, it is a really dry snow, so it doesn't stick together well. They made snow piles or snow Jabba the Huts... enjoy! (Today's forecast: high of 24, low of 13. BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR)