Stroll

We did a little outing during the weekend.  The sunlight was warm but not very strong.  A typical comfortable afternoon of the fall. Perfect for a little walk in the neighborhood.

Daddy and son. Love them.

Birthday party fun

Jesse, Eric's friend from the Church, turned four on the weekend. We went to Jesse's birthday party on Sunday.

The party theme is Spiderman. Jesse was dressed in Spiderman costume.  The cupcakes and goodies bags are all decorated with Spiderman icon.  Very cute. 

Several activities were also arranged for the kids, including pizza dinner, swing, climbing tree (only interested Eric :-)), and blow bubbles.  Super fun.  Eric had a blast.  When it's time to get home, Eric was so reluctant to go that he shouted, "I am not tired." :-)

Eric has been longing for climbing trees for a long time. At the friend's backyard there is a small tree which is perfect for Eric to horn his climbing skills.  Eric didn't miss the chance and he played with the tree for a long time :-)

Favorite recipes: Banana Bread

I seldom make bread because in my impression, to make a bread requires a lot of cooking skills, and only a veteran can handle it properly.  However, this banana bread recipe changes my opinion.  It is easy to follow.  I did once and the result is very satisfactory, which highly boosts my confidence regarding cooking :-)

I adapt this banana bread's recipe here just in case you are interested.

Ingredients

1 cup granulated sugar
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
3 ripe bananas
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan.
Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until flour disappears.
Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Remove bread from pan, invert onto rack and cool completely before slicing.

A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous -- Coco Chanel

"A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous."
"Fashion fades, only style remains the same."
"Elegance is not the prerogative of those who have just escaped from adolescence, but of those who have already taken possession of their future."
-- Coco Chanel

How to grow old gracefully is a topic most ladies concern. Evelyn has wonderful collective ideas in her latest article.

Parenting: OK, let's play

The other day, during a casual talk, I told Eric that when daddy was at his age, daddy could read books all day long, and was very interested in math. Secretly, I had two purposes to say this: 1. to motivate Eric to ; 2. to set up the Husband's brilliant image in Eric's mind.

Eric's response was totally beyond my expectation. He asked,"did he know how to play?" For a moment, I didn't know how to answer.  To be honest, I was deeply impressed by a four-year-old's pointed remarks. It hits the nail on the head.

"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." This is a familiar saying.  I am Chinese.  But I am not a tiger mother by any means.  However, sometimes I become very pressured and tend to be kind of pushy, especially when I knew several friends' three-year-old kids have already begun piano and swimming classes.  I definitely need a clear reminder (like the one from Eric's reply) to make me recognize that play is still preschoolers' main job.

Eric is climbing up a tree :-)

We plan to give Eric more time to play, at least for the time before he attends elementary school.  After all, play is the path that young children take to learn. Learn though play will be more fun.

Food for thought

I read this awesome food for thought via Simple marriage.

Random moments of the week

1. It's a bit of chilly at night, so I gave Eric a blanket to keep him warm during sleep.  The blanket is cheery orange color and there's a huge Mickey picture printed on it. Eric loves it. On the first sight, he exclaimed,"oh, it's so fancy!"

2. Eric's toy shelf has turned into book shelf, because he is "a big boy" now and he is more interested in reading.

3. Daisy is concentrating on her toy hanging overhead.  Look at her eyes, I think they can talk :-)

4. When I feed Daisy, I am obsessed with her chubby hands and feet.  Look at her toes, so juicy!

5. Eric will attend his friend Jesse's birthday party this weekend.  Eric and I work together to do the birthday card.

6. My reading buddy.  With Kindle on hand, I found reading is so much easier (or so less excuses of not reading).  This year I have read a lot more books, feeling very literate :-)

Meet Daisy

Daisy is an almost-three-months-old little darling.
This little one's main daily tasks now are eating and sleeping.  However, she has a clear craving for communication.

 She loves to talk...with her own coo language. If I respond her back with the same coo coo sound, she will be very happy, always paying me a sweet smile, a smile that can easily melt my heart.

 When I speak to her, she stares at my mouth intensively.  It is obvious that she wants to observe how my mouth moves and curves so she can imitate to let out the same sound.

She is very curious.  Sometimes during her cry, if I turn on a light or walk to another room, she will forget about crying and rove her eyes around trying to find out what's going on.

Dear Daisy, I love you!

Meet Eric

Eric is a cute, smart, playful, and easy-going four-year-old.  He is our dearest sweetheart.

Eric is very easy-going.  At day care or at church, he has a lot of friends and gets along well with all the other kids.  The teacher appraised him that Eric is so understanding and sympathetic that he never lets anyone down or feel upset.

Eric loves to draw. Whenever he has a pen and paper on hand, he will draw.  His most favorite drawing is train and tracks.  All kinds of trains and different shapes of tracks.

Eric is a gourmet, meaning that he is very picky at eating. Variety and flavor are the most important for his little tummy, which constantly challenges my cooking skills. The good thing is that he loves to drink milk with honey,

Dear Eric, I love you!

Crispy morning

In this crispy October morning, after pumping and feeding the baby, the baby went back to sleep.  All the other family members still remained in bed.  It was quiet and peaceful.  The time was all mine.  I so cherished the moment out of my daily mama-hood chore.  So with my camera, I went out for a small walk in the neighborhood.  The air was crispy with a slight chill, which made me all refreshed up.

 The Sun had come out. The sunshine was soft and orange.  The Moon still hanged in the sky.  Hey, Moon, do you love the beautiful morning too?

 Two early birds were standing on the wire.  I was wondering what they were whispering about.

Hello, sunshine!