The Bay Leaf Condition

[Note bene: I wrote this in early November and found it today while looking through my drafts. I don't know why I never posted it. Anyway, ta da!]

After President Uchtdorf's wonderful remarks at the Relief Society Broadcast, the Parable of the Bay Leaf has become a household topic. In it, he describes his wife's ability to create wonderful and delicious meals, beautifully presented; but that she consistantly punctuates the creation with a comment such as, “I’m afraid I used a touch too much ginger,” or, “Next time, I think it would be better if I used a little more curry and one additional bay leaf.”

President Uchtdorf points out that as women, we may not appreciate the value of what we do in the world and more importantly who we are. These 'bay leaf' comments, while showing a desire to improve and create goodness and "perfection", may also clue us in to the fact that our focus is on a tiny fraction of the scene.

Enough with the generalizations.

I do this. Since my husband has pointed it out, I am amazed how frequently it occurs.

An example: I busted my butt making homemade whole-wheat bread sticks for a ward party. I juggled it between Nathanael's nap, picking up yeast when I discovered we were out, and the Halloween event that afternoon. I ran to and fro, keeping my perspective, and enjoying Nathanael all throughout the day. We finally were sitting at the party chatting and eating and I got my first bite. I said, "Oh! Next time I need to let them raise longer. It is so dense!"

Now, this was after several people had already complemented me and Nathanael was halfway through his (the ultimate complement). Michael pointed out my comment (in light of the bay leaf) and I was so surprised! I didn't even notice.

It is now becoming part of my personal culture to say things like, "Wow. I did a really great job on this!" And then I bite my tongue when I want to add my bay leaf comment.

I realize that our public culture doesn't allow for this type of comment. It doesn't expect it. And it doesn't fit into the model of self-depreciation as humility that we frequently buy into. But as I have trusted and taken the step to believe in myself--enough to verbalize it--I have felt peace.

Growing Up

Nathanael's getting more mature. Today he tooted (loudly) and barely even cracked a smile.

Mad Skills

Scaling... (and climbing down): The couch, the chairs, the changing table, the oven door, the dishwasher door, bookshelves, the other bookshelves, my kitchen island, the dining table, the stove top, the bathtub fixtures, the toilet, his treasure box, the driver's seat, his high chair (he actually got inside it by himself. I'm so proud. And horrified! He also did this with his stroller months ago.)

Bringing me my shoes. He has been doing this for some time now, but recently we have seen the addition of bringing matching shoes!

Unlocking the car: Okay, not quite. But he gets the key in the lock all by himself. He just doesn't have the turning part down yet. He adores doing this and knows exactly how it works. I usually give him my keys at our apartment door and he takes them the 20 feet to the car and puts them in the lock and waits for me!

Lower the blinds, turn off the lights, close the door, shut the cupboards, drain the bathtub, put the toilet seat down (oh, and flush the toilet!) He has an unusual sense of project completion for a toddler! :)

Make toast: one day I saw him faithfully open the door, put his bread on the rack, close the door carefully, push some buttons, open the door, remove his toast, and then blow on the toast to cool it off! Guess who does exactly that routine every morning? The best was the blowing though. I was laughing all day about that.

Rinse his own hair in the bath: Well, this has only happened two or three times, but it sure was a funny surprise for me. he picked up the water bottle and dumped the contents on his head. It startled him a little, but he just laughed!

Put himself to sleep: The little dear gets a hold of a corner on that worn blue blanket, and sucks his thumb right out of consciousness.

Walk down (and up) stairs: He'll climb on his knees in a pinch, but if there's a railing, he makes good use of it. Or, if I'm available, he'll hold my hand (which melts my heart!)

Dance, baby, dance! A partial list of the sounds he dances to: Recorded music, mom's singing, the cheesy electronic baby piano, the kazoo, the blender, the kitchen aid, the oven timer, the wheat grinder (we like kitchen appliances), the dishwasher, the clock (Michael just told me that one now!), clapping, tapping, or in response to the word dance. In the words of my mother, the music's in him!

Clapping, peek-a-boo, give high-five, clasp his hands (which he finds hilarious), point (especially to airplanes overhead), point to his toes, sign bath, milk, more, banana, thanks you, diaper, and pray. We're currently working on please. So far, all I've gotten is 'bath' :)

Leading the music: even when I mention a song, his little arm (so chubby!) goes heaven-ward in preparation. It's a bit of a dance/leading combo.

Give sweet pats: This started B.R.E. (before rested era) when I would rock, swaddle, and pat him to encourage (nay, bribe) sleeping. (I was desperate!) One day I was holding him upright and he started patting my back! After that I requested and encouraged and reinforced it daily--how could I resist? Now I no longer pat--I hug. But he, my loving little man, does both.

What a treat! We love him so dearly.

Madame Wazelle

So last night Michael and I were relaxing before bed, doing some reading and just unwinding, when we saw a humongous spider.

It was really, really big.

Michael has recently embraced some non-violent beliefs since his world religions class which I normally approve of, and agree with. But I have a exception clause: spiders.

It may be related to the fact that I saw Arachnophobia when I was 10, or just because I'm easily freaked out by just about anything. :) But I do not like spiders.

So it falls upon my husband to do away with them.

I always tell him (and it is true) that if he wants to capture it and release it outside, I will feel just as secure. He does not have to kill it. However, last night he didn't sense the urgency of the project and the spider escaped into the heater.xzz

After that, we both were pretty distracted from our reading and kept looking over to the corner where we last saw it. I noticed our fixation, and offered: what should we name her?
?????ZZ?
Michael: Madame Huge!
Me: How about just Madame.
No, it needs more syllables.
Ah! Mademoiselle. Perfect.
Michael: Who is Madame Wazelle?

And the name stuck.

Epilogue: Later Michael did kill her, but I found another one on the ceiling today. It escaped my assassination attempt and I was so spooked by the whole thing, I jumped a foot when I stepped on a twist tie Nathanael left on the floor. I was gasping for breath as if something actually scary had happened!

Memory Lane

Here is a fun little game I found on Melissa'a blog (thanks!)

If you're reading this, please leave a comment on this post of a memory that you and I have had together. It doesn't matter if you've known me for a short time or a long time, anything that you remember! Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you.

I'm excited to drum up some comments as I've been absent for awhile in both reading and writing blog posts.

...but I came back! (Michael, are you reading this?)

Anyway, have fun with this. I'm looking forward to hearing the goofy things you all remember about me!

Also, if you leave a memory about me, I'll go to your blog and leave one about you.

On your mark... get set... comment!

Summer of Quilting

My sister Kristine told me about an article she read which described how the author and his brother had decided to name each summer and then create a tradition to suit the name.

I have a quilt that I started in 2003 with my then-roommates. It is still unfinished, mostly because the only thing I know how to do (or did a month ago) was piece the top. When I started a second quilting project, my summer found it's name.

My friend Laura started a "Quilting Club" enrichment class and taught me to make this beautiful object:



Take note: there are some very exciting "unique features" (maybe Kim is the only one to remember that inside joke). For example, I did the machine quilting myself!!! It seemed so daunting, but it really wasn't too bad. :)



Also, the corners are mitered, which was that bad, but I did it nonetheless. Bravo, me!

Overall, it's pretty much amazing, and so am I.



So now I am finishing my big quilting project that has been sitting for so long. It's been pretty adventurous to figure it out, but it's fun at the same time. Watch out, soon I'll be on to the next one!

Milestones

Nathanael has now fully entered the world of walking. Yesterday he was doing laps around the living room for entertainment. :)

His most recent accomplishment was standing up without an object to lean on. We were playing in the front yard in the morning, and he just stood up. He has yet to repeat the feat, he prefers to use his old method when there is furniture around.

I love being present for all these tiny yet exhilarating milestones. We celebrate every day!

Well, I have come to acknowledge my fixed belief: all blog entries without photographs are in some way lesser. I don't know if I'll ever move past this belief, but for now, a totally unrelated picture of Nathanael and his cousin in their sweet shades (April 2008).

Living Room Amusement Park

Nathanael has enjoyed the vacuum cleaner as long as he's been aware of it. Michael decided to let him get a little more involved this time. It has already commanded a repeat performance! :)

Wisdom on the Mountains

So life has been busy, to say the least, and we have been having wonderful adventures, but I will comment more about that later (along with photos). For now I wish to enlighten you all with a bit of wisdom from the mouth of one who knows.

While hiking Y Mountain in Provo a few summers ago, Michael and I overheard a young lady, very well acquainted with nature for a four-year-old, teaching a much younger lady the ways of the world. She said, "It's a potato and it's a bug. It's a potato bug." I felt that I had been privy to a great moment of wisdom, and I repeat it often to keep myself young.

We joined the Navy to see the world! What did we see? We saw the sea.

Today we had the lovely opportunity of hosting our good friends, the Andruses, before they went on their cruise to Alaska! We had such a fun time catching up and visiting together. After they left for the ship, we went on our own boat excursion: Seafair Fleet Week!

We've been listening to the roar of the Blue Angels as they practiced all week for their shows today and tomorrow, and we even got a few sightings in today! They fly so close together--and so fast! But the highlight of Fleet Week came for us this afternoon when we got to tour the USS Bunker Hill, Sword of the Fleet. We met many Navy People (I keep getting corrected when I call them officers and they're really not!) :D

We learned about the missles and the big guns and the machine guns and the little but faster guns. (I had no idea!) We also learned about the navigation, the helicopter landing pad, the emergency boats and their cool system of getting supplies from another ship in open water. They use a pulley-type system that is mounted on the ship to haul supplies from the other ship, which can be up to 100 feet away!

An unexpected tidbit came when I asked about the floating orange perimeter around the entire fleet about 20 feet from the ships on all sides. I figured it was some kind of security measure. Actually, the Navy Man (I didn't ever catch on when they were flinging titles around) said it was in case of an oil spill, it would contain the oil until it could be cleaned up. Michael said that would take a lot of towels! :)

We didn't have our camera with us (now I know how you felt, Margaret! This picture is from the website.), just trust me--these boats were big. I mean, ships. Well, not nearly as big as the Norweigian Star, but we'll see about cruise ships in November.

p.s. I looked through an observation site on board the Bunker Hill and even though it was all the way over by Magnolia, I could still see people walking around on the Star--clear over at Pier 66, on Bell Street! (For you non-Seattle-ites, first of all, come and see what a wonderful place this is! Secondly, we were a long ways away. The point is, it was a powerful set of mounted binoculars!) :D

My Savory Plant Named Sage

I wrote this on July 26th but didn't have the gumption to finish it. Anyhow, here it is, with my follow-up entry. Bonne Journee.

I bought a Winter Savory plant at the Farmers Market four weeks ago. The first week I did my best to kill it by leaving it out in the heat and consistantly neglecting to water it. The second week I brought it in and nearly stained the carpet by over-watering it. Now the lower branches are brown and brittle, but the tops are shooting up like rockets. (Imagine Meg Ryan in I.Q.) I feel like I should go back and read Jacob 5--what have I missed?!?!

Something deep inside me is telling me to prune. Prune like mad! (I told Michael this and he keeps quoting it!) I haven't done it yet, but I know that the longer I wait, the weirder this thing is going to turn out...

8/2/07: Well, I finally pruned and it's getting browner by the day. Now I think it's getting overwattered and undersunned. So yesterday it went back out on the patio. I get to remember to water it out there though. There are quite a few new shoots, so I'm positive about it's future.

p.s. It's called Sage because Michael couldn't remember which herb it was. We attempted a re-christening, but Sage stuck. :D

Rock-a-bye Baby

One of the topics I have wanted to write down for a while now is the subject of rocking. Now, ever since Nathanael was born we have learned the fine art of rocking a baby. There are many different kinds of rocking, and each baby demands a personalized selection at any given moment of his life. For example, Nathanael may want vigorous rocking from his dad as a newborn when he is tired and gentle swaying from mom as a two-month old when he is upset.

Scientifically-minded persons, beware! There is no pattern in these variables that can be learned or --gasp!-- optimized. And what works for one baby in one sitatuation one day, may not work in a similar situation the next!

However, one humorous aspect that we have discovered about this particular stretch of parenthood is our own acclimation to the rocking. Michael and I both have noticed ourselves unconsciously rocking or swaying at times when we are not holding Nathanael! I have been especially embarrassed when I find myself doing so in a store or public area.

Conversely, the calm rhythmic motion is very soothing and is something that most adults could certainly benefit from. We can take a lesson from babies and learn to serve our bodies when they would like food, water, and sleep and not at our own convenience. We might find that they serve us much better when we attend to them promptly!