Two Friends + Two Birthdays = FOUR!!

Leo's BFF John turned four on 4/13. He was planning to have his party at the YMCA and he was nice enough to let Leo (who is turning four on 4/30) do a joint birthday with him. What a special way to spend his last birthday in his native Georgia!

The kids played basketball and soccer in the gym and then had pizza and cake in the "teen center." They had a blast and I'm sure all slept well last night. Here are some pics from our first-borns' four-year-old double birthday party:

I'm glad he can do this since, for awhile there, I thought we were going to have to call him "Goalie" for the rest of his life.

Whatever happened to Cookinggal?

I love it when publications or news magazine shows run "Whatever happened to?" or "Where are they now?" pieces. It basically means "This person was once really successful and now he or she is a loser. Let's check in and see what he or she is doing that will undoubtedly seem quite pathetic when you compare it to the height of their career."

Jake Ryan from Sixteen Candles is a popular one. He was the hunk of the moment and then he was gone. Apparently he makes and sells furniture now. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But the dude was Jake Ryan. Come on.

Anyway, I thought I'd do a "Whatever happened to?" about Cookinggal:

She first made her appearance on the blog in 2005. She was my alter ego of sorts. (And now that I've admitted that I will stop talking about her in the third person.) I went from not knowing how to brown meat to making meat loaf to following recipes to baking to CREATING recipes! From 2005 to about 2008 I evolved into this amazing (or perhaps just decent) cook. I loved trying out new recipes. I loved sharing recipes. I loved tweaking recipes and even being the authority on all things Mexican. My mom even got me a Cookinggal apron for Christmas one year.

It's hard to pinpoint exactly when Cookinggal started to fizzle. Or maybe it was April 30th, 2008 when Cookinggal took on another role--Mommygal. (So maybe it's not too hard to pinpoint.) Sure, I still cooked but I guess I didn't make anything worth blogging about. But let's face it, I didn't do as much blogging either.

So where has Cookinggal been from 2008 to 2012? Well, she's been changing diapers, calming tantrums, potty training, driving to school/classes/parties/playgroups, giving baths. And when she (there I go again with the third person)...I DO cook, it's usually mac and cheese or "eggs I may pick up with my hands." (The latter I don't really cook. I just heat up Nancy's petite quiches in the microwave but Leo calls it cooking.)

But I've decided now that I have two kids and one of them seems like he may be a promising eater, I will cook again. I will try to make meals that the whole family can eat--something hearty enough for Frank, healthy enough for me, basic enough for Leo and edible enough for Gus. Yes, Cookinggal's got her (my) work cut out for me. But I'm ready to don that apron again. In fact, I put it on just the other day. And this time I had a very helpful assistant--Cookingboy (although he prefers to be called "The Baker's Man.") Even he knows how to brown meat. Well, not really but he can stir a mean muffin mix.

I'm raising a new generation of cookers. Not the pathetic ending you were hoping for, huh?

Gus has been here ten months

Gus may have a chill attitude but he’s also always on the go. He’s a crawling machine now and wants to get into everything. His first word still might be “whatever” but his first sentence will be “I want that.” He wants to grab everything and he’s not pleased unless he’s holding something (which usually goes promptly into his mouth).

Speaking of crawling, many have commented that Gus doesn’t do the “proposal scoot” or “boot scootin’ boogie” like Leo did. This is where Leo would crawl with one knee up and one knee down. Update as of this week: Gus DOES do it! He doesn’t do it all the time, but sometimes. I have yet to capture it on video but it’s very cute.

Gus is so busy racing around and trying to climb the stairs (he can get up about three steps!) that he’s not really into baby sign language or clapping or any of those communication milestones. I try to ask him if he wants more food by doing the sign and he just barks as if to say, “Of course I want more, lady! Hand it over!” So he does have his ways of communicating; they’re just sort of cave-man like.

He eats anything. However, spoon-feeding is tough because he just wants to grab the spoon and do it himself. It’s such a nuisance that consequently, he’s very advanced with finger food. (At least more than Leo was at this age…or even at Leo’s age now). When I make lunch for Gus and me when Leo’s at school, we pretty much eat the same thing. (He shares my love of sandwiches and hummus.) The only thing he doesn’t seem to like is avocado. Isn’t that weird?

If I can just brag about one more area in which Gus is advanced, I’d like to tell you about his train/car/truck playing. He already moves them just like a kid does; he chugs! When I asked Leo what he did at the YMCA playcenter today he said he and Gus played this and he and Gus played that. They can already play together thanks to Gus’ superior playing skills.

So to sum up, Gus is adorable. He smiles all the time and I feel like he’s saying, “I’m thrilled!” He’s just thrilled about everything—about toys, about climbing, about people and especially about his big brother. And we are thrilled that he’s been here ten months!

Thank you, Easter Bunny

This was a very monumental Easter for the Simcik family--

1. It was Gus' first Easter!

2. It was our last Easter in Roswell.

3. Our nine year wedding anniversary fell the day before Good Friday.

So here you'll see pics of Easter morning, our traditional anniversary pic (this time with a new family member!) and then Easter brunch with John and Etienne's families. Sorry for the lack of Gus pics but he'll be featured this week when he turns ten months old!

Fool's Gold

I don't know about your town but around here, there are a lot of "We Buy Gold!" shops. In fact, there are more popping up every day. There's one by my house that I thought was just a regular jewelry store (even has "diamond" in the title) but they've got an obnoxious sandwich sign in the parking lot about how they're just dying to buy my gold. And I hear lots of radio ads about "We'll buy your gold! It's okay if it's damaged or old!" (Okay, that's not the exact wording but they might want to use that if they come across this.)

Now I get that there could be establishments that sell jewelry AND buy it. But when a place pushes the "buying" part that hard, it makes me suspicious. I mean, a business can't survive from buying alone. So is the catch that they want you to come in to sell your gold and then they sell you some more gold and/or jewels?

I've decided to launch a full on investigation of this alleged gold scheme. And by "alleged" I mean I'm the one making the allegations and by "investigation" I mean I am going to Google it. Right now.

Okay, I'm back from my sleuthing. I was right that it's a con but wrong about why. They want to buy your gold and pay you less than what it's worth. You're thinking, "But I don't know how much it's worth." That's what they're counting on.

I had trouble even finding information on the internet about it because when you Google things like "We Buy Gold Scams" all you find are all these websites that talk about why they're the best place for your gold dealings and why the others are scams.

Oh, and the gold-selling parties might be fun but they're shady too. Sure, it's cool to walk away with $100 but what if you could really get $200? One article I read said it's better to shop around locally and see who will you give you the best deal. This is preferable to mail-in places. Mail-in? I don't have any fancy gold jewelry but I sure wouldn't send what I do have through the mail and expect to get top dollar.

I hope that my expose on the gold-buying industry has opened your eyes, both to the scandal that's behind those sandwich signs and to the blood, sweat and tears it takes to work in the field of investigative blogging.

Me and my "Baby" Brother

To Leo, Gus is more than a brother, he's a full-on playmate. The other day Leo tried to get Gus to "hide from mommy" with him under his comforter. Gus is such a good sport that I think Leo forgets (or doesn't quite understand) that's he's a baby.

Here they are climbing the pillow mountain:

At Leo's last day at his TEDDY study, pretending he and Gus are pirates. When I took Gus to feed him, Leo said, "Don't take my baby pirate away!"

Pretending to be train workers, digging in coal, according to Leo.
Just goofing around
Playing in Fort Little Table:
I think I was wrong. It's Gus who forgets he's just a baby!

Burger Salad

This is my idea for a restaurant: We serve burgers but in salad form. My inspiration is me and my lunch/dinner. I eat this all the time. Here are some examples of burger salads I like:

Veggie burger with spinach, tomatoes and Laughing Cow cheese, drizzled with Ranch.

Leftover turkey burger with spinach, hard boiled egg, shredded cheese, black beans, avocado, drizzled with Ranch.

Black bean veggie burger with spinach, Laughing Cow cheese, ravioli, drizzled with Ranch.

I realize I didn't exactly invent the burger salad. I mean, when I went to look for pics on the internet there were plenty. But here are some things that give my burger salads an edge:

I usually put the salad stuff ON TOP of the burger. That's because I heat up the burger in the microwave and it makes more sense (and uses fewer dishes) to just throw all the fixing on top.

I'm not afraid to toss in pasta, or really any leftovers, into the salad.

I don't even cut up the burger. It's more fun to cut it up while you eat the burger salad.

I use a huge bowl!

But here are some things I need to tweak before I open my restaurant:

I should probably experiment with different salad dressings. Right now Ranch is my go-to for burger salads.

Also in the variety department, I need to branch out on my greens. It's just that spinach is so good for you. If I have to eat leaves, I want them to at least be a super food, ya know?

I gotta come up with a better name for the restaurant than "Burger Salad." What about bunless burgers? Or Green Burgers? Or just B.S.?

At B.S.'s (placeholder name), we will have themed burger salads like the Mexican which will include my favorite black bean burger with sour cream, shredded cheese, avocado, tomatoes. (Ranch would probably be overkill on this one.)

The Californian would probably have sprouts and avocados because that's basically what that means.

The Greek would have olives even though I don't like them but that's really what you're saying if you call it Greek.

I'd have to have a buffalo one for Frank with a bison burger, buffalo sauce and blue cheese.

A Hawaiian one with pineapples...note: put more fruit in burger salads.

Ooh, and what about a breakfast one with eggs and bacon...and Cheerios? (JK on the last part. It would be too expensive to pay to have Cheerios in the name.)

I welcome any other burger salad ideas you may have. Please note I will not be able to officially compensate you for the idea or even name it after you. I will, however, give you free refills on fountain drinks at the time of your first purchase*

*Offer valid only at Georgia and Texas locations. Not to be combined with any other discounts. Offer valid only with purchase of $20 or more in burger salads. Dine-in only. Must mention this blog to redeem and must have notarized form saying you invented one of the burger salads on the menu. Person redeeming offer must also purchase a Burger Salad t-shirt and wear it at time of purchase. Must promise to wash Burger Salad t-shirt and wear it at least once a week following first purchase and continue wearing as long as the restaurant is in existence. Expires 4/1/12.

Hanging with the Big Boys

When it comes to playing, Gus is sort of advanced. That's because he has a big brother to watch and imitate. Gus wants to play with Leo and his friends so badly. Too bad Leo always says, "Pick up him!" whenever Gus gets near his toys. He's even more interested in Leo's toys than his own.

Here are some examples of all the big boy things Gus can do at the young age of nine months:

Swinging with Pascal:

Chilling with Pascal and Tyler:

Escaping because...
...he's gotta climb the rock wall!

Getting a push from Etienne:

Acting silly with Leo:

More acting silly with Leo and taking the lead!

Pajama Party

It hadn't occurred to me to match the boys. I think because Gus was always wearing onesies and Leo would have objected to snaps in his crotch. Also, most of Gus' clothes were once Leo's so it's not like we were gonna buy new clothes for both of them.

Enter Grandmother.

We went to Carter's while she was visiting and she made out like a bandit for grandparent discount day. (Wednesdays, btw). Included in the lot were two sets of matching dinosaur pajamas that say "T Rex Racing." (Leo's choice.)

We dressed G and L in them and then attempted to take pics. Frank kept saying, "Gus is the instigator!" Enjoy.

The Truth about Trader Joe's

You just mention "Trader Joe's" and people get all giddy: "Oh, I LOVE Trader Joe's!" "Trader Joe's has the coolest stuff!" and "I wish we had a Trader Joe's near us!" And I would agree. Trader Joe's has a funky vibe; they have products you can't find anywhere else and their staff wear Hawaiian shirts. What could be better?

I've got two Trader Joe's around me, each about seven miles away. That's kinda close but I pass about five other grocery stores to get there. So, while I thought I would frequent TJ's, I really don't.

But lately I've thought I should go there more often. I heard their produce is superior and even the prices are better than mainstream grocers. I thought I'd go there for the produce and try to get all my shopping done. Lots of people I know use it as their main grocery store.

I was not successful when I approached it as a one-stop-shop for all my grocery needs. For instance, I was making something that required cream of chicken soup. TJ's doesn't have things like cream of chicken soup. They also don't have normal cheese, just fancy stuff. Forget apple sauce, just pear sauce. (And 3-year-olds CAN tell the difference). Bread? Just the hoity-toity kind (i.e. hard). Yes, they do have great produce and lots of specialty cheeses. Their meat is great and you can find lots of fun things in their frozen food aisle. Still, I would have to hit another grocery store to complete my list.

And while the people who work there are knowledgable and generally helpful, they look at you like you're speaking a foreign language if you ask for non-organic black beans. The other day I was checking out (with half my list unfulfilled) and I tried to hand my bags to the cashier, one by one. She gave me a mock laugh and said, "Um, you just put them over there" and pointed to the bagging area. She acted like I didn't know the protocol. And that's when I realized what it is that irks me about Trader Joe's. Remember that line from Reality Bites that Ben Stiller said? "Excuse me if somebody doesn't know the secret handshake."

That's what I want to say to the patrons and employees of Trader Joe's. "Excuse me if somebody doesn't know the secret handshake." It's like you have to be in the know just to shop there. "Oh, you want baking powder? We only have coconut oil powder!" "Napkins? Sure, we've got brown, cardboard ones for $20."

So yes, it's got cool stuff but I get so aggravated when I try to buy things beyond the novelty there.

And back to the checkout lady and the secret handshake, what's with the tiny shelf where we put our groceries? I need a conveyor belt, people! I was so annoyed with that girl after she made me feel like the new kid at school that when she forgot to ring up some peas of mine and she didn't charge me for them, I didn't even say thank you. That was hard. But I did it. And then I drove over to Kroger's to get all the things I really needed.

Gus has been here nine months

Goose, Gus-Gus, Mus, Gussy, Gusaloo...after nine months a person can get lots of nick names. (We only hear "August" at the doctor's office though.)

I'd say the theme of the last month has been "Gus on the move." He's just so busy, getting around and getting into everything. He crawls super fast and he's even starting to try to climb

the stairs. (He can get up one step.)

As of yesterday, he can even pull up! I saw him pull up on the bath tub but grandmother said he had already pulled up on the couch. Frank had to lower his crib mattress or we would have had the youngest escapee. He's so active that I think he's losing weight (or at least not growing as rapidly as he once was). He's starting to lose that baby fat which is sad but it's also fun to see what his face really looks like underneath all the chub.

Gus' other trick is growing teeth. He's got FIVE--two on the bottom and three on the top. He wants to bite on everything and I mean everything. (Starting to rethink this whole "breastfeeding till their one" idea.)

Now let's talk about Gus' favorite subject: food. He likes everything we put in front of him and now enjoys three meals a day in his high chair. He still eats purees along with his finger food but he always steals the spoon from me, making it a messy battle. When I opened the pantry the other day while holding Gus, the kid practically hyperventialated at the sight of all the Cheerios.

He's an excellent sleeper. I think I have his thumb and blanket to thank for that. He just sucks that thumb and holds his soft blankie and goes to sleep. Most importantly, he stays that way!

He's still very good natured, so content to just sit and watch every

one. He also smiles and laughs really easily. Exceptions: when we put him in his car seat and when a meal is over.

It's fun to see him start to take an interest in toys. Now we have to have a supply of them at the ready. He likes balls, teething toys and recently

has taken an interest in soft blocks. If he had his way he'd prefer to play with cords and shoes. His favorite playmate is his big brother Leo. Although the feeling is not always mutual.

We love you, Gus! Happy nine months!

Hobby Husbands

It seems that if you are a husband, you have to have an obsession--something that you yearn to do every Saturday but your wife only lets you do it about one Saturday a month. When we lived in Texas a lot of husbands were into hunting. The wives would lament, "Mark is going dove hunting again."

"Didn't he go dove hunting last weekend?"

"No, that was scouting. He didn't actually shoot any doves. He was just..." (I lost interest here but I assume she said, "looking for potential dove victims")

And then when you talk to the guy, all he wants to talk about is his obsession: "I've got some venison in the freezer that me and my brother-in-law killed ourselves."

Yippee!

Here are some other common husband obsessions:

Golf

Video Games

Biking

Beer-making

Cars, life-size

Cars, remote control

Fishing

Watching sports (I don't know that many who actually play sports, at least not on the level where I'd call it an obsession.)

All of these activities have one thing in common: they take up a lot of time. When husbands engage in these hobbies they are out of pocket for an entire Saturday. And in some cases, like with the beer and video games, their gear takes up lots of room in the house.

That's why I am proud to say that my husband is hobby-less. Now, he DOES play the guitar but he really only gets "obsessed" with it when he's in a band. In fact, he's been a member of two semi-famous groups--there was "Stain" from 1993-1995 which put out a tape--yes, tape--and the MBA cover band "Strictly Business." Haven't heard of either of them? Really? Hmmm, maybe they weren't all that successful. But he does have three guitars and an amp and they do take up some space.

Anyway, for purposes of this blog, Frank does not really have a hobby and it's wonderful. If he had a hobby then not only would I be annoyed that he worked so early and so late, I'd also be annoyed that he was gone all day Saturday, golfing or hunting or skateboarding. And on the days that he wasn't gone, I'd know that he'd really want to go and I'd feel resentful and he'd feel resentful and we'd get into arguments where I'd say, "I bet you wish you were deer hunting right now!" and he'd say, "Hell, yea, I'd rather be deer hunting! The deer don't nag at me like you do!"

Or if we weren't fighting about it, he'd want to TALK about it. "I shot a 83 over par with a handicap of 14...blah blah blah...sand trap...driver...blah blah blah...tee time."

In the evenings Frank is available to watch shows with me (and we pretty much agree on them although he rarely wants to watch House Hunters and I refuse to watch anymore episodes of True Blood). He's not holed up playing video games. On the weekends, I don't have to share Frank with a golf course or a deer lease or a basement brewery. He does, however, seem to need a hair cut every week: "I've gotta get my ears lowered," he always says. And I say, "AGAIN? You and your hair cuts!"

But if getting his hair cut is his obsession, now that's a hobby I can deal with.

Posing and Performing

Gus is such a ham when he crawls! Don't ask me why he has on shoes and no pants but it makes the whole thing even funnier.

Look how he poses on his side and even cheeses for the camera!

"What? You never seen a pantless dude crawl before?"

"I'm gonna get you...and when I do, I'll eat your shoes!"
And here's Leo performing a song he learned at school: